Geek Chic
by loveableturtle
Summary: Ally Dawson is the popular girl at Miami High, and Austin Moon is the geek. They don't get on. But when Ally's sent to spend the summer at the music camp her mom works at, she'll get a lot more than she bargained for. There wouldn't be a story, of course, if Austin didn't happen to go to the same camp, and they may just dig up a whole load of new feelings for each other.
1. A Birthday Shared

**Okay, so...I don't know what to say. **

**Voila?**

**Here you go.**

**Merry Christmas.**

**So sorry that I suck so much and had to do this. **

**For anyone who's only just reading this for the first time, ignore all that, I'm just apologising to the beautiful people who read this the first time around and never got to see it finished.**

**I promise you guys, this time I'll finish it.**

**Thank you all for reading, you're all amazing and I love you! :D **

**-loveableturtle, formerly xXDemiFanForeverXx**

Chapter 1

"Happy Birthday, Ally." Yet another smiling face greeted her as she strolled through the hallway towards homeroom. She nodded at the girl in reply, vaguely recognising her from some class or another. Trish rolled her eyes.

"I'll never understand how everyone always seems to know it's your birthday, Ally. It's like you're some kind of celebrity." She said, a little admiringly. Ally laughed lightly.

"Trish, darling, I'm the closest thing to a celebrity there is in this hell-hole." she said in a mock-snobby voice. Trish snorted a laugh.

"I suppose. So, are you looking forward to homeroom?" she asked. Ally turned to her friend, eyebrows furrowed in surprised confusion.

"What could I possibly be looking forward to about homeroom?" she asked.

"Being called up to the front of the room so that everyone can sing happy birthday to you." Trish replied, like it was obvious. Ally scoffed.

"You say it like it's some kind of privilege, but she does that for everyone. And considering who the other person in our homeroom with a birthday today is, I'm considering ditching it." She muttered quietly. Trish sighed.

"Look, Ally, I know its shit, sharing a birthday with _him, _but remember what your dad said? If you get into any more trouble before summer, he's transferring you to that all-girls school." Her best friend reminded her. Ally sighed, but she knew her friend was right.

"I know. Ugh, come on; let's just get this over with. It's a good job we only have two days left before summer…"

They entered homeroom together, their young teacher smiling at them. It was supposed to look welcoming, but Miss Denver was just relieved that she didn't have to moan at the girls for being late again.

As they took their seats, Ally silently hoped that Miss Denver would forget that it was her birthday, but no such luck.

"So, everyone; today is a special day, is it not? Not one but _two _of our class members happen to have birthdays today. Ally, Austin, would the two of you like to make your way to the front?" she said. Ally sighed, getting to her feet and making her way to the front with as much dignity as she could muster. Austin, on the other hand, ran his fingers through his hair nervously as he stumbled out of his front-row seat to stand on the opposite side of the teacher's desk, staring at his feet like he'd never seen anything more interesting in his life.

Austin had never really understood why Ally hated him so much. The only obvious explanation was that she hated him because he shared her birthday, but that seemed a little pathetic. Maybe it was just because he was a geek. Your stereotypical geek; glasses, braces, straight A's, and up until freshman year, he'd had a lisp, too. He'd never been self-conscious, but Ally Dawson had always managed to get under his skin, ever since she first called him a 'four-eyed freak' back in elementary school.

"So, you're both seventeen today, am I right?" Miss asked. Ally nodded chastely, staring at the blond boy angrily, as if it was somehow _his _fault that he happened to be born on the same day as her.

"Okay…erm, well, would either of you like to tell us what you're getting for your birthday?" she asked, trying to elicit some kind of reaction to lighten the atmosphere. Ally smirked, daring Austin to speak, but he still refused to look at her so she decided to speak.

"I got a new Lamborghini, a Gucci handbag, two pairs of Louis Vuitton's, a Chihuahua and _loads _of clothes." Ally announced, meeting Trish's gaze and smiling. The class was silent for a moment, before Miss Denver cleared her throat and looked at Austin.

"And how about you, Austin?" she asked. The blond finally looked up, refusing to look at Ally, and smiled a little awkwardly.

"Skateboard and a TV." He said quietly. Ally snorted derisively, rolling her eyes. A few other members of the class laughed a little too, making Austin blush bright red and look back down at his feet. Miss Denver sighed resignedly, taking a seat and glancing at the clock.

"Okay, guy, let's just sing happy birthday and get to your classes, okay?"

Austin and Ally groaned simultaneously, causing Ally to glare daggers at the boy, who still didn't look up but blushed even harder.

_Happy Birthday to you, _

_Happy Birthday to you,_

_Happy Birthday AustinAndAlly_,

_Happy Birthday to you!_

Ally refused to acknowledge how easily the two names seemed to fit together, settling for feeling irritated about how out of tune the class were. She skirted past Austin, planning on marching back to her seat, grabbing her bag, and leaving the room with Trish. Things didn't quite work out the way she planned, however, due to the hand she felt grab her arm. Seeing red, she whirled around to yell at whoever had had the nerves to _touch _her.

"What-"

"Sorry, Ally. I just, erm…Have a happy birthday." Austin muttered, gaze meeting hers for a moment before her looked away, towards the window. Ally scoffed, looking him up and down disgustedly.

"Oh, trust me, I will. I'd say it back, but I'm too busy wishing it _wasn't _your birthday." She glowered at him. At that, something inside of him seemed to snap. He turned his head to look her in the eyes, stepping closer menacingly. She moved backwards, scared, and almost fell over.

"Seriously? What do you expect me to do? Apologise? I'm _sorry, _Ally. I am _so, so sorry _that I was _born _seventeen years ago today. Next time, I'll try to be born another fucking day!" he shouted. She opened her mouth to retaliate, but couldn't seem to get anything out. The entire room was silent; watching the confrontation like it was some kind of soap opera they were all addicted to. Eventually, she regained her composure and managed to stand up straight, staring him down.

"Excuse me? Who do you think you are, speaking to me like that?" she growled. He scoffed.

"Oh, I'm sorry; I forgot that you were _royalty. _Oh, wait, hang on-you're not. You're just a good-for-nothing, spoilt little rich-bitch who thinks she rules the school because her daddy pays half the bills! Well, news flash, Ally; things may be good now, but we only have a year left of high school, and once you've left, you're going to have to learn pretty damn fast. Because in the real world, people don't hand things to you on a platter because your daddy tells them to. And people definitely won't let you walk all over them like you do now. So, you know, next time you decide to treat me like shit, remember this; in two years' time, _I'll _be earning loads of money in some high-powered job, and _you'll_ be asking people 'would you like fries with that?'." He finished his rant with a disgusted grimace on his face and Ally could do nothing but stare at him blankly, a little voice in the back of her head muttering 'he's right'.

"You're wrong." She said softly. His expression softened slightly when he saw the tears in her eyes, but then hardened again as he scowled.

"If that's what helps you sleep at night…" he replied, before grabbing his bag from the desk, turning around and marching out of the room. Ally watched him go, mouth open in shock. After a few seconds of silence, the class burst into action, gathering belongings into bags and chattering loudly about random things, saving the gossiping until Ally was out of earshot. Trish slung her bag and Ally's over her shoulder, grabbed her best friend and dragged her out of the room just as the bell went off.

Ally didn't speak a word on the way to their English class, despite Trish's endless attempts to make conversation. Halfway through English and Ally had had enough of Trish's chatter, so she snapped at her to "Shut the fuck up before I do something I'll regret".

When the bell finally rang for the end of the day, after what felt like years, Ally practically ran out of school, ignoring the few people that attempted to speak to her. As she clambered into her shiny new Lamborghini, she spotted an all-too-familiar head of blonde hair disappear into a blue range rover.

Feeling a new sense of vengeance take over, she started the car and pulled out of the spot.

What happened next was a bit of a blur, but when she got home her father yelled at her for denting her brand new car, and then even more later when he got a call from the school, complaining about his daughter purposely driving into a fellow student's car.

"I just don't know what to do with you, Allyson! You're not the same girl you used to be. I know it was hard for you when your mom left, but we decided you would be better off staying with me, so that you didn't have to leave all your friends and school. Now I'm not sure that was the right thing to do…" he wasn't shouting, but his voice was dripping with disappointment. A year ago, that would have bothered Ally more than any punishment he could dish out ever would. But ever since her mother left, she gave up caring. Caring only got her hurt, and she didn't want to be hurt like that again. But she did, however, want her life to remain the same.

"What are you trying to say, dad? Are you sick of me? Are you going to send me off to live with mom, never to speak to me again?" she asked bitterly. He sighed loudly.

"No, I'm not going to do that. I am sending you to stay with your mom, but only for the summer. You're coming back here for your senior year of school. Hopefully a few months away will do you some good."

"Maybe it would, but I'm not going."

"Yes, you are."

"No, I'm not."

"Look, Ally, I know I've been a pushover up until now, but this is one thing I'm not backing down on. You legally have to do as I say for the next year, and right now I am saying that you're spending the summer with your mother." He said, and Ally could tell by his tone of voice that he was 100% serious.

"Fine. Whatever. But I promise, when I come back I'm going to be just as much of a bitch as I am now, of not more so." She hissed, getting up to storm upstairs into her bedroom. Lester Dawson sighed, silently counting down from five. As expected, on five, he heard her bedroom door slam open again and she ran back down the stairs, looking horrified.

"Dad, please tell me mom doesn't still work at that disgusting music camp every summer?" she asked. He looked almost apologetic as he nodded, knowing that she was probably going to hate him for the rest of her life for this.

"I'm sorry, Ally, but I can't watch do ruin your life and not do anything about it."

"Stop. Just…don't." she said harshly. Making her way back to her bedroom dejectedly, she fought back tears.

"Ally…" her dad called half-heartedly. She ignored him, shouting over her shoulder;

"I'm not going to school tomorrow. Or Friday. Call in sick for me."

**So? You like? Review, let me know what you thought and when you want the next chapter!**

**Thank you!**

**-Kacey3**


	2. Camping with the Enemy

**Hey guys! Sorry about the wait! I'm so grateful to you all for all the reviews and favourites and follows, it means a hell of a lot and I'm glad you like the story, seriously! Love you all, please keep reviewing! **

**Okay, so in my eyes, I imagine the camp to resemble Camp Rock, from the Disney Movie, (if you don't know it, you're crazy and need to go watch it now!). But if you don't see that, it doesn't really matter, but I've based it off of that because I suck at going into detail on things like that :/**

Chapter 2

Four days later sees Ally in the backseat of her dad's Jeep, scowling to herself as they make their way along the bumpy country lanes leading to the campsite her mother works at.

"Allyson, please speak to me…" Lester tried, voice pained. Ally just rolled her eyes, finishing her text to Trish and groaning when the message 'NO SIGNAL' came up on the screen.

"Ally…"

"What?" she snapped.

"Are you…are you okay?" he asked, so surprised that she was actually responding to him that he didn't even know what he wanted to say.

"Well, other than the fact that I'm on the way to a prison camp where I have to spend my entire summer, yeahh, I'm just peachy." She muttered sourly, refusing to look up. Lester sighed, deciding not to say anything more.

When they finally arrived at the camp, her mother ran out of a small log cabin to greet them, smiling tersely at Lester before enveloping Ally in a bear hug. For a second, Ally froze, not sure how to react. She hadn't actually seen her mother since she left, a whole year ago. But then she felt the tears soak through the thin fabric of her shirt and her resolve softened. She wrapped her arms around her mother in return and, for the first time since she left, let the tears flow freely.

When they finally pulled away, both of them wiping their eyes and blushing, Ally's father had moved all of Ally's bags from the trunk and was standing there awkwardly, not sure what to do. Caught up in the moment, Ally hugged her dad, whispering a hasty 'see you soon' into his ear, before grabbing her suitcase and heading towards the cabin her mother had left.

A minute or so later she heard the car start up again, and then her mother walked into the cabin carrying her other two bags. She smiled a little tightly.

"Look, mom, despite what just happened, I'm still unbelievably pissed off at you. I've missed you, and I love you, but I can't just forgive you for leaving us just like that." She warned the older woman. Her mom smiled, nodding.

"I know, Ally, and I understand. I wouldn't forgive me either. That's why I'm glad you're here. We can use the summer to try and figure things out, okay? Will that work?" she asked. Ally thought for a second, and then nodded.

"Yeah, I think so." She said, and then started to unpack.

Half an hour later, she was lying on the bed, nothing to do. Dianne frowned when she sighed loudly, and suggested she go for a walk and explore the camp.

"Yeah, okay. So, how many other people are here?" she asked as she slipped her shoes on.

"Well, there are fifty campers, from age 11 to 16, and then there are thirty-two counsellors, from age 17 to 21, who are basically kids who've come to camp since they were 11 and are now too old to be classed as campers. They're pretty much just more campers, but they have other responsibilities and have to help out sometimes. And then there are nineteen staff members, and me. We used to have more staff, but the counsellors are unpaid and can do the same job. Not everyone is here yet, but they should all be getting here by the end of today." She shrugged. Ally smiled, a little relieved that there would at least be some people her age; although there was no guarantee that she would get on with them.

She made her way around the camp listening to music on her iPod, smiling and singing along to her favourite songs. Her mother had told her to be at the main stage in an hour, but she wasn't sure where that was exactly. Thankfully, she came across a group of people gathered around a huge stage in the middle of a load of cabins, and she knew she'd found the place. Looked over the crowds, hoping to see someone her age on their own, but the only ones she saw were all stood in a group, smiling and laughing like best friends. Despite her popularity and apparent over-confidence, when it comes to new people, Ally is a very shy person, so she made her way over to an empty picnic bench and sat down, playing angry birds on her phone.

She looked up at the sound of her mother's voice on stage, but soon tuned out, only catching the main points: fire drill tomorrow; bonfire tomorrow night; workshops begin on Tuesday. Then her mother announced that their newest counsellor would kick off the summer with a song, and she plugged in her headphones, ready to tune out if the guy sucked.

She was just finishing the level when he started talking.

"Hey, everyone, for those of you that don't know, I'm Austin Moon, and I'm gonna sing for you today. I hope you guys like it!" he grinned enthusiastically. Ally did a double take.

He had the same voice as the Austin she knew.

And the same name.

And even the same hair.

But gone were the geeky glasses, and the braces, and the shy, under-confident nature she had come to dislike so much.

The guy that stood on the stage looked confident, happy and a little bit, dare she say it…_sexy. _

And as if that wasn't enough to send Ally's brain into meltdown, he just _had _to open his mouth and start _singing. _

_I can get your heartbeat beat beat beating like_

_I can get your heart beat beating like that_

_You know you got my heartbeat beat beat beating like eh eh eh eh eh_

_I can get your heartbeat beat beat beating like_

_I can get your heart beat beating like that_

_You know you got my heartbeat beat beat beating like eh eh eh eh _

_eh_

_Would you would you want it if I stood up above the crowd_

_Got up on a chair and if I shouted you name out loud _

_Could you could you take it call me baby without a doubt _

_I'm shouting you name right now, shouting you name right now_

_Don't you don't you get it I'm nothing like them other ones_

_Rise up on a notion, I ain't hosting no re-runs_

_I said it said it said it_

_Wouldn't let it be all or none _

'_Cause I ain't no re-run I ain't no re-run_

_I'll make you forget what you came here for _

_For goodness sake let's make or break this heart 'cause it needs more_

_I can get your heart beat beat beat beating like_

_I can get your heart beat beating like that_

_You know you got my heart beat beat beat beating like eh eh eh eh eh_

_I can get your heart beat beat beat beating like_

_I can get your heart beat beating like that_

_You know you got my heart beat beat beat beating like eh eh eh eh eh_

_Would you want want want if I opened your gate at night?_

_Took you by the hand and make your heart beat at the speed of light_

_Could you could you take it if I treated you just right_

_Your heart as the speed of light my heart at the speed of light_

_Juggling them consequences, losing your blue suede_

_Might as well go 'cause we're already half way_

_We're only young once so grow up with me babe _

_We're already halfway, already half way_

_I can make you forget what you came here for_

_For goodness sake let's make or break this heart 'cause it needs more_

_I can get your heart beat beat beat beating like_

_I can get your heart beat beating like that_

_You know you got my heart beat beat beat beating like eh eh eh eh eh_

_I can get your heart beat beat beat beating like_

_I can get your heart beat beating like that_

_You know you got my heart beat beat beat beating like eh eh eh eh eh_

_No I won't leave this room without you_

_You know you're feeling like you're supposed to_

_I know you know you wanna see how fast it can go_

_So I'ma take you to the top_

_And bring you down slow oh_

_I can get your heart beat beat beat beating like_

_I can get your heart beat beating like that_

_You know you got my heart beat beat beat beating like eh eh eh eh eh_

_I can get your heart beat beat beat beating like_

_I can get your heart beat beating like that_

_You know you got my heart beat beat beat beating like eh eh eh eh eh_

_Eh eh lemme hear you like eh eh eh eh eh_

_Can you do it like eh eh eh eh eh? _

_Eh eh can you do it like eh eh eh eh eh_

_Can you do it like eh eh eh eh eh_

_Eh eh lemme hear you like eh eh eh eh eh_

_Can you do it like eh eh eh eh eh _

_Eh eh can you do it like eh eh eh eh eh_

_Can you do it like eh eh eh eh eh_

Ally stared at the sweaty, red-faced boy on the stage and felt her stomach flip as the crowd erupted into applause. Minus the glasses and the braces, this guy was, for lack of a better word, gorgeous.

How had she never realised this before?

What was happening?

She almost starting looking around for cameras, convinced that this had to be some kind of practical joke.

She watched from the picnic bench she was sat at as he jumped off the stage and made his way over to the group of smiling, laughing teenagers she had noticed earlier.

"Austin, what the fuck happened to you?" a red-haired, lanky guy asked, pulling him into a bear hug. Austin wrapped his arms around the guy in return, smiling.

"Hey Dez! Well, as a birthday present, my parents paid for me to get contact lenses and my braces came off yesterday." He shrugged. A blonde girl sidled up to him, batting her eyelashes.

"Well it's so good to see you, Austin, and you look _amazing_. And you sounded amazing too! How was your birthday?" she asked, slinging her arms around his neck and lifting one foot in a typical, cliché-movie-moment. She watched as the guy called Dez and the brunette guy looked at each other and rolled their eyes, and knew she wasn't the only one who found it corny.

"Hey Tilly, it's good to see you too. It was great, my parents got me that skateboard I really wanted and a TV too…I was so surprised, I don't know where they got the money." He frowned, looking a little worried, but then the other girl, dark-blonde with the body of a model, hugged him. He hugged her back eagerly, smiling.

"Hey Cassidy." He greeted her. She smiled, kissing him full on the mouth. Ally felt her stomach clench at that, although she would never admit it and she wasn't quite sure why.

"Hey Austin." She said softly. He rolled his eyes, wiping his mouth and sticking his tongue out at her.

"You need to stop kissing me, Cass. I might get the wrong idea…" he said, making everyone laugh. Ally wondered why it was so funny; it looked to her like they were dating.

"I think you know _all too well _just how gay Cassidy is, Austin." The brunette guy said, making Austin wince.

"Man, I still can't believe I walked in on that…" he muttered. Cassidy laughed, flicking her hair over her shoulder.

"I told you that I was going back to my cabin with Mikayla…it's not my fault you didn't get the hint." She shrugged.

"I thought you were straight, Cass! I was planning to ask you out!" he cried. She waved her hand dismissively.

"Details, details."

Ally found herself fighting a laugh. She felt strangely relieved to find out that Cassidy was a lesbian…but if anyone asked, she would deny it.

"Anyway, hey Dallas, how have you been?" Austin greeted the final guy. He smiled, pulling Austin in for a quick 'guy hug' and shrugged.

"Okay, I guess. My brother moved out." He told him. Austin frowned.

"Are you…?"

"Yeah, I'm okay." He assured him quickly. Ally wondered why they all looked a little uncomfortable at that, but then the ginger guy looked her way and she ducked her head, pretending to be texting.

"Hey, guys, who's that?" she heard Dez ask, sounding confused.

"Not sure…but she looks too old to be a counsellor." The Tilly girl pointed out. Ally inwardly scoffed at herself for already knowing all of their names.

"Well, how about we stop talking about her like she doesn't exist, especially since she can probably hear every word we're saying, and go over and say hello?" Austin suggested. Ally panicked, not sure whether to stay there and face Austin, or make a hurried exit and make them all think she was a freak. Austin made the decision for her, however, when he jogged over and sat down on the bench opposite. She continued to stare down at the bench, too afraid to look up and let him see who she was.

"Hey, I'm Austin. Erm...welcome to camp." He said, not nervous, but unsure about how to greet this girl who apparently didn't even have the courtesy to look at him.

"Hi." She mumbled in response. He frowned, looking up at his friends who were now stood behind him.

"Erm, are you okay?" Cassidy asked. She shrugged, still pretending to be texting.

"Okay, girl, I don't want to upset you, but you're being a tad rude and I'm not sure I like it." Tilly said shrilly. Instinctively, Ally's head snapped up to glare at her. Austin gasped, jumping backwards and falling off the bench, landing on his ass in the mud. Ally looked down at him, eyes wide, for a moment, before all his friends burst into laughter.

"What was that, Austin? Did you get scared?" Dez sputtered. Austin looked up at him in annoyance momentarily, before looking back at Ally. Their gazes locked for a second before Ally got to her feet and ran back to her cabin.

**Review? Pwetty pwease? Love you guys! **

**-Kacey **


	3. Fire Drills and Fighting

**Okay so this one was much faster than the last but I have uploaded like two one-shots between now and the last chapter and I figured I already have a few chapters written so I might as well treat you, especially since you've all been so amazing in your reviews and follows and favourites so yay I love you all! **

**I hope you like this chapter, a bit more Auslly arguments, because I know you all just LOVE the fighting jazz ;)**

Chapter 3

"Ally, come on, you have to come to the fire drill! It's compulsory!" her mom yelled, yanking the cover over her head. Ally groaned, pulling them back.

"There's not going to be a fire, mom, I'll be fine. Please don't make me!" she whined. Dianne shook her head.

"I'm going to get dressed. If you're not ready to go when I'm done, I'm dragging you out there in your pyjamas. And it's cold outside." She warned, before disappearing into the bathroom. Ally sighed, curling up in the warmth of the covers and drifting back to sleep.

She was rudely awoken two minutes later by her mother pulling her out of bed and out of the cabin.

"Mom! Mom, stop! I'll get dressed! I'm sorry!" she squealed, trying to wriggle out of her grip, but her mom was too strong.

"I told you I'd do this if you weren't ready. The alarm is going off in ten minutes, and I have to go through all the instructions; you don't have time to get dressed." She said. Ally sighed, halting in her struggling to wrap her arms around herself to fight the chill. She was only wearing a SpongeBob tank top and yellow boy shorts and it was only around four degrees outside.

"Mom, are you trying to kill me?" she asked, shivering. Dianne sighed, shrugging off her cardigan and handing it to Ally. It was only a thin one and it only really covered her arms, but Ally was grateful for the added warmth.

Her mom finally let her go when they reached the crowd gathered around the main stage. Ally hung back, promising her mom not to disappear, and watched as the older woman climbed onstage and everyone instantly quietened.

Her mom ran through the drill quickly, but Ally tuned out. She figured she could just follow everyone else, and focused on warming herself up as much as possible, staring down at her feet as she drew a heart with her toes.

"You do realise you're not in Miami anymore, right?" a familiar voice said from behind her, making her jump. She whirled around, scowling.

"Yeah, actually, I'm not quite that stupid." She spat.

"Then why are you dressed like that at seven o'clock in the morning?" he asked, eyebrows raised. She sighed loudly, turning her back on him.

"Because I wouldn't get out of bed." She muttered.

"Huh?"

"I wouldn't get out of bed and get dressed, so mom dragged me out here in my pyjamas."

"Oh, I see…wait, is that why you're here? Is Dianne your mom?" he asked, surprised.

"Yup. Although right now, I wish she wasn't."

"Wow, it's a small world…I've been coming here since I was eleven, and I've known Dianne for as long, and I never knew she was your mom." She smiled tightly.

"Well, I guess you do now."

"How come you've never come here before?"

"Because I've never been in so much trouble that my dad sent me here for the summer as a punishment before." She muttered sourly. He chuckled.

"I heard about the car incident. What happened?" he asked. She rolled her eyes.

"I thought it was yours…so I totalled the car." She admitted. He laughed loudly then, causing a few heads to turn in their direction. They must have looked odd, Ally refusing to turn around and look at him but still participating in the conversation.

"Why would you do that?"

"I don't know, I guess it was something to do with the homeroom incident, but maybe I was just PMS'd." she replied sarcastically, spinning around to glare at him. He winced, looking like he'd forgotten about that.

"Right, sorry."

"Yeah." She replied, not knowing what else to say.

"I mean it, though. I am sorry. Some of the things I said…they were out of order." He apologised, but she could tell he was only saying it because he felt it was the right thing to do. She rolled her eyes, smiling slightly, albeit cynically.

"Don't apologise. I know you don't mean it."

"No, I don't. So…are you going to apologise to me?" he asked. She frowned.

"For what?"

"Oh, I don't know, for treating me like shit for all those years?" he suggested, disbelieving. She sighed.

"Look, I know I'm a bitch, but I'm not going to apologise. Just because we're at the same summer camp doesn't mean we're suddenly going to be friends and we're gonna go back to school and I'm gonna be nice. I could apologise, but we'd both know I don't mean it, and I'd do it again anyway. That's just who I am. I'm not saying its right, or good, but it's _me. _And I'm not gonna change myself, not for _you_, not for _anyone._" She explained. Austin scoffed, shaking his head.

"You know, I thought I'd do the nice thing and try to apologise, but of course, Ally Dawson is too good to accept an apology, no matter how insincere, and move on. No, she has to go and dig herself a deeper hole and be an even bigger bitch than ever." He half-shouted. She rolled her eyes, tutting.

"Look, if you're going to go off on one again, please warn me now so I can get the hell out of here."

"I-you-what? You know what? You're not even worth it. You're pathetic." He spat, glaring at her before storming away. She sighed, closing her eyes for a second to contain her anger.

And then there was the shrill, high-pitched sound of the siren, echoing around the entire camp, making Ally grimace and put her hands over her ears. Everyone was moving about, heading in different directions. Ally whirled around a few times, not sure where she was supposed to be going, and before she knew it, everyone had disappeared.

"Shit!" she muttered, regretting not listening to her mother. And suddenly Austin was back, stood in front of her, looking angry still but a little resigned.

"You're in group D, with me. Come on, we need to get to the lake before Dianne gets there to check everyone's there. I know she's your mom, but she's not the type of woman to go soft on you just because you're her daughter." He muttered, gesturing for her to follow him. She scowled (something she'd been doing a lot of recently).

"Don't tell me what my own mother is like, as if I don't know her. I've known her longer than you have." She hissed. He rolled his eyes.

"Really? Come on, Ally, just follow me. I don't know about you, but I don't want to spend the entire summer scrubbing the kitchen floor."

"She wouldn't make us do that, would she?" Ally asked, honestly surprised. He nodded.

"That's one of the easier punishments. Now come on, let's go." He didn't have to say it again. Ally followed him, practically running to keep up with him. They finally got there just as Dianne did. She looked at them, suspicious, but decided to forget about it. She knew Austin well enough to know they hadn't been doing anything wrong.

"Austin, Ally, is your whole group here?" she asked, looking at her daughter. Ally opened her mouth, no idea what to say, but thankfully Austin saved her.

"Yeah, Ericka, Sandy, Monty, Ben, Tasha, Frank, Paul and Simone, they're all here." Austin said, smiling reassuringly. Dianne nodded, smiling at him, before moving on to the next group. Ally sighed in relief, turning to thank him. He just glowered at her.

"I didn't do it for you, I did it for me. You just happened to benefit." He muttered lowly, walking off towards his friends again. She just rolled her eyes and started back to her cabin.

"Oh, and Ally?" he called. She looked over.

"What?"

"Nice pyjamas." He said, winking, but somehow it wasn't even a flirty wink. She looked down, and gasped. She was only wearing a think tank top…without a bra…in the cold.

"Fuck you, Austin Moon!" she yelled at him, folding her arms over her chest as she hurried back to her cabin.

Two hours later, she was showered and dressed and making her way over to the canteen to get something to eat. As she stood in line, staring at her blank phone screen, someone tapped her on the shoulder, making her jump.

"Hey Ally!" she turned to see Cassidy's smiling face. She smiled back, a little unsure.

"Hey, erm…"

"Cassidy."

"Hi Cassidy." She smiled. Of course, she already knew her name, but didn't want to seem weird by letting the girl _know_ that she already knew her name.

"So, how are you?" she asked, pouring herself a bowl of lucky charms and milk. Ally's nose wrinkled slightly at the cereal, searching for something healthier. The only thing she could see was muesli, and even though she hated muesli, she found herself pouring a bowl. Her summer was already looking suckish enough; she wasn't going to let herself get fat too.

"I'm okay, I guess. You?"

"I'm great. I love coming to camp, you know? Getting away from my normal life for a couple months, hanging out with the four best friends a girl can have…it's amazing." She sighed.

"Yeah, well, I don't even have any friends here, so my summer? It's looking pretty shitty."

"I thought you and Austin were friends?" she asked, confused. Ally scoffed.

"Did you get that idea from the way he fell off the bench in shock when he saw me or from our almost constant fighting every time we see each other?"

"He said he was just shocked because he wasn't expecting to see you, and he was already falling off the bench…and I haven't seen you guys fighting." She looked confused.

"Look, it's just…we're not friends, okay? Far from it."

"Oh, okay then. So, do you have a boyfriend?" she asked, looking a little hopeful, but Ally wasn't sure why.

"Don't even try it, Cass. Ally's one of the straightest girls I've ever met. She's slept with half the male population of Miami High. I wouldn't be surprised if she's slept with some of the teachers." That all-too-familiar voice drawled form behind her. She knew he hated her, of course, but that…that was a low blow. Furious, she whirled around.

"Excuse me? You did not just say that! Really?" she shouted. A hush settled over the canteen as they faced off.

"I'm sorry for believing what _everybody _says. Are you really that clueless that you don't realise what people think of you? You're the school slut!" he asked, incredulous. Her eyes narrowed and she stepped forwards menacingly.

"Call me a slut one more time. I dare you." She breathed. He leant down, so that his lips were right by her ear, and breathed;

"S. L. U. T."

With a scream of rage fit for a wild animal, she launched herself on him, slapping him, shoving him backwards, until he tripped over someone's feet and fell to the floor, Ally on top of him, slapping his face, his chest, anything she could reach. After a minute or so she felt hands on her arms, trying to drag her off, she started kicking. As Dallas and Dez dragged her to her feet she managed to land a kick right in the crotch. Groaning loudly, Austin curled into a ball, moaning in pain. Tilly knelt down beside him, trying to comfort him, but he just told her to 'fuck off and get me some fucking ice'.

Dallas and Dez held Ally back, despite her struggling, until she ran out of energy, sagging. They let her go, tensed, ready to grab her again if she went for Austin, but she felt too drained. She crumpled in on herself, collapsing onto the ground and resting her head on her knees. Cassidy knelt down beside her, looking worried.

"I'm not a slut." Ally muttered through the tears running down her face. She knew her eye-makeup would have run everywhere, and usually that would make her even more upset, but she just couldn't bring herself to give a damn.

"I know, Ally. Come on; let's get you back to your cabin." Cassidy said, helping her up. Ally glanced at Austin one last time as she followed Cassidy out of the canteen. He was holding an ice pack to his injury, looking pained and absolutely livid.

…

"Why are you being nice to me?" Ally asked her, voice muffled by the pillow her face was buried in. Cassidy laughed, placing the glass of water in her hand down on the table beside Ally's bed.

"Why wouldn't I be nice to you?"

"Well, you're friends with Austin. And…fuck, isn't that reason enough? I'm a bitch to him. We hate each other. Surely as his friend, you should hate me too?" she sat up, drinking from the glass and smiling gratefully. Cassidy laughed.

"Well, unlike Tilly and _maybe _Dez, I'm not Austin's _follower. _Simply his friend. And as long as you do nothing to me, I don't have reason to have a problem with you. Okay, sure, I don't like how mean you are to him. But that's between you and him, and from what I've seen, he gives as good as he gets. I don't want to get into the details of who started it, because let's face it, you're probably both as bad as each other. Just…as long as you treat me and the others like we deserve, I don't care what goes down between you and Austin." She explained. Ally smiled. She was kind of in awe of how mature Cassidy was.

"Wow. Thanks, I guess."

"Don't thank me."

"It's nice to know that there's at least one person at this camp I can call a friend." Ally smiled a little sadly.

"Don't worry, I'm sure Tilly, Dez and Dallas will come around. Well…Dez and Dallas. Tilly's a little brainwashed by her adoration for Austin. But everyone else here is really nice, and I'm sure you'll fit in." she assured her.

"You think so?" Ally looked hopeful. For the first time since her birthday, she actually felt like maybe her summer wouldn't suck as much as she expected. Cassidy smiled knowingly.

"I know so."

**So...what do you think? Let me know in a lovely little REVIEW? ;D**

**-Kacey**


	4. Just Add Alcohol

**Okay, so this time, this IS an actual chapter! Woo! **

**Again, I am so sorry for disappointing you earlier with that not-actually-a-chapter-chapter. But I felt so bad about it, and I did promise you an update soon because of it, so...**

**VOILA!**

**I hope you like this. I get the feeling you might. I dunno. Eurgh. Review?**

Chapter 4

"Ally, come on, you should come! It'll be fun!" Cassidy moaned, jumping up and down on Ally's bed. The brunette whined, burying her head under her pillow.

"I'mnotgoingtothedamnpartyCassidy." She mumbled from underneath the pillow. Cass rolled her eyes, throwing herself on top of Ally. She squealed, wriggling to try and make her friend get off her, but to no avail. Eventually she groaned and conceded.

"Fine!" she shouted, instantly regretting it. But she'd said it now, and there was no way Cassidy was letting it go.

"Yay! Come on, let's find you something to wear!" she said excitedly, jumping off the bed and running over to Ally's closet to look through the dresses. She pulled out a gold sequinned one with ruby clusters around the chest. Ally watched in horror as her friend tugged on one of the clusters.

"Are these real?" she asked. Ally ran over, grabbing the dress.

"Yes, they are! This dress cost just under $6,000, Cass!" she whisper-yelled. Cassidy's jaw dropped and she smiled sheepishly.

"Erm…whoops?"

"It's okay, you didn't break it." Ally said, surprising herself. Usually, she would have gone mad and kicked Cassidy out of the cabin. Had it been Trish, she certainly would have. But there was something about Cassidy…she decided it was because she just didn't want to lose the only friend she had at this damn camp.

Two hours later, Cassidy was dressed in the gold dress, (after a _lot _of persuading and a promise to reimburse every last penny if she so much as pulled a stitch), and Ally was wearing an equally expensive black micro-mini dress with a white stripe down the middle, which emphasised her cleavage, and matching black shoes that made her legs look endless. Smiling into the mirror, she fiddled with her necklace and pouted, dragging Cassidy closer so that they could both pose in the mirror, taking pictures and laughing.

She even took a picture of the two of them kissing, because Cassidy knew she didn't feel like that and she loved that she felt comfortable enough with Cassidy to do that and not feel awkward. And it might have had a little to do with the bottle of vodka they'd smuggled from her mom's booze cupboard. It was half-gone, and they weren't even at the party yet.

"So, is there going to be any more alcohol at this party?" Ally asked, fixing her lipstick and grabbing her coat so that they could head over. Cassidy giggled.

"Well, there's not supposed to be, but Dallas and Dez usually manage to smuggle something good in…" she informed her. Ally grinned. She hadn't gotten drunk for a few weeks now, and since she had survived her first two weeks of camp, she figured she deserved a bit of a celebration.

When they got to the party, held in the canteen, it was already in full swing. There was ear-splittingly loud music, enough to make the floor vibrate, and it stank of sweat. Perfect. It wasn't a nightclub, and there weren't enough people to be able to get lost in the crowds, but it was better than Ally had expected. They made their way to the middle of the dance-floor, losing themselves in the music and dancing together, forgetting everyone else.

Eventually, Dallas found them, grinning as he pulled them into a corner with a table full of drinks and food, and produced a bottle of vodka from under his jacket. He poured some into each of the five drinks on the table, and then into his own cup. Ally and Cassidy took a cup each, and left the others for Dallas to hand out to Dez, Tilly and Austin when they found him.

Two hours later saw Ally, Cassidy, Tilly, Dallas, Dez and Austin stumbling out of the canteen. They were all giggling and falling over each other. The adults that were at the party knew they were drunk, but didn't say anything. Cassidy and Ally decided to go back to Ally's cabin, where Ally automatically jumped into the shower to sober up a little. When she finished she put on some Abercrombie sweats and a plain white tank, ready to climb into bed.

When she got into her room she groaned. Cassidy was snoring away on the floor and the bed was covered in vomit. No _way _was she sleeping in that. Grabbing a bottle of water from the mini fridge, she left the cabin and started walking around the camp. She was no longer completely out of it, but she was still past the point of making rational decisions, and she managed to trip over thin air a few times.

Eventually she got sick of walking and made her way through the small cluster of trees that they campers called a forest, and sat down on the edge of the lake, toes skimming the surface of the water.

Her first two weeks of camp hadn't been too bad. Since the whole canteen incident, she'd managed to mostly avoid Austin, and when they had been in each other's company she had settled for sending him death glares and, occasionally, when their eyes met, she would scowl at him. She might have called him a 'fucking twat' at some point when he said something stupid, but Dez quickly made a joke to distract him.

In the state that she was in, Ally decided it would be nice to go for a swim. After wrestling with her sweats for a minute or so, (those things just _did not _want to come off), she started to lower herself into the water.

"Ally!" someone shouted, sounding worried. Despite her intoxicated state, and the slurring, she recognised the voice. She turned to see Austin running down the bank, laughing when he tripped and rolled the rest of the way.

"Whassup Austin?" she mumbled.

"You can't swim in there, s'too deep." He replied, brushing himself off. She laughed.

"I can swim."

"Yeah, but it's dangerous. There are sharks."

"Sharks?" she panicked, pulling her legs out of the water and clambering back up the bank a little. Austin's eyes twinkled with humour, but she didn't catch it, so he decided to continue the joke.

"Yeah, loads. That's why we don't do water sports. A few years ago, one chewed through the bottom of a boat and ate four campers." He said seriously. She looked thoughtful for a moment, and then burst into tears. He frowned, feeling guilty, although the spark of resentment he felt for her was still there.

"Ally, why are you crying?" he asked cautiously.

"Because you hate me!" she wailed dramatically. His eyebrows furrowed.

"Erm…you hate me too, remember?"

"No, I don't! I'm just a bitch!"

"Okay, Ally, I'm confused."

"I'm a horrible person, and I treated you badly. But I never treated you any differently to how I treated anyone else. You were just the only person that didn't just take it." She elaborated. Austin was surprised at how easily she managed to talk in her intoxicated state.

"I never was one to let people pick on me."

"Yeah, and because you were mean back, I developed a bit of a vendetta against you. And pretty soon all the anger I had felt towards _everyone _was mostly directed towards _you._"

"But…I don't understand _why _you were so angry. Why were you mean to everyone? We were all just kids when it all started." He asked, sitting down beside her on the grass.

"When my mom left, it hurt so much. So I started being a bitch. Caring hurts too much. If I don't care, I don't get hurt." She mumbled. Somehow, Austin understood what she was trying to say. He scooted closer to her, rubbing her shoulder comfortingly.

"Hey, it's okay. Look, if it helps, I don't hate you, I just strongly dislike you. If I hated you, I would have just let you get in the lake, even with all the sharks." He nudged her shoulder, trying to lighten the mood. She just cried harder, and he inwardly scolded himself. He'd never been good with crying girls.

"No, you wouldn't, because you're too _nice. _You're nothing but _nice_, and I've been an absolute bitch to you! I treated you like shit, even when you tried to put it behind you and wish me a happy birthday. You tried to make things better and I threw it back in your face. I'm a terrible person." By now, some of her speech was practically unintelligible due to the amount she had had to drink, but Austin managed to piece it together.

"You're not a terrible person, you've just been through some shit and you've let it get to you, and change you."

"Don't try and make it sound like it's not my fault. It's _all _on me. I'm a bitch."

"Yeah, you are. And I'm not gonna sugar-coat it, because I guess you need to know the truth. You're a first-class bitch, and you treat anyone that doesn't worship you like shit. And honestly? It bugs the crap out of me. But…sometimes, like now, you're really just a normal girl."

"I'm drunk, Austin. I'm only nice when I'm drunk. I'm a very normal girl." She muttered bitterly. He laughed, and they settled into a comfortable silence. After a few minutes, Ally began shivering, and Austin sighed.

"Come on, you should get back to your cabin." He said, jumping to his feet, losing his balance a little, and then holding out a hand to help Ally up. She groaned.

"There's Cassidy all over my bed and vomit is on my floor." She mumbled. Austin laughed.

"Just you wait until I tell Cass you got her muddled up with vomit." He joked.

"I'll have to sleep on the porch." She whined. He sighed, thinking for a second.

"Okay then, you can stay in my cabin. I have one to myself since my cabin mate bailed." He shrugged. She looked up at him, eyelids drooping.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, it's fine. Come on." He sighed, not sure this was a good idea.

…...

Ally woke up the next morning with a pounding headache and no memory of anything after about halfway through the party. She rolled over in bed, reaching out to grab her phone, and panicked when there was no table beside her bed. Eyes opening, she gasped and sat up in the bed, confused. She sighed in relief when she realised that she was alone in bed, and she was still wearing underwear and a top. And she still _felt _like a virgin, which is always a good sign.

Looking around, she noticed another bed opposite the one she was on. There was a human-shaped lump under the cover, but whoever it was, their head was covered so she had no idea who it was. Any normal person would look around, try to figure out who it was from their belongings. But no. Ally, being Ally, decided to get out of the bed, creep over to the other bed, and poke the lump. Whoever it was grunted, but didn't wake up. Frowning, she poked them again. A hand reached out to swat her away and she laughed, ducking. She then poked the form one final time, much harder, and Austin shot up out of bed, eyes wide, making a strange sound halfway between a squeal and a shout. Ally stumbled back, surprised to see him, and almost fell over.

"Austin?" she gasped, shocked. He smiled weakly, rubbing his face with his hands and reaching for a pair of glasses on his dresser.

"Hey Ally. You feeling okay?" he asked. She scowled.

"What the fuck am I doing here? What did you do?" she asked. He rolled his eyes.

"Good to see you're back."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing. Look, we all got drunk last night and I found you about to go for a swim in the lake." He said.

"Sharks." She muttered, flashes of memories coming back to her. He chuckled softly, and then cleared his throat.

"Yeah, and then you told me that there was Cassidy all over your bed and vomit on your floor."

"Oh, God, don't tell Cass I confused her with vomit, she'll murder me." She groaned. He nodded in agreement, before continuing.

"Yeah, so anyway, you didn't wanna sleep on the porch so I said you could have the spare bed in my cabin." He finished his explanation. She looked suspicious for a second, searching his expression for any hint of a lie, but must have decided he was telling the truth because she smiled a little apologetically.

"So, completely innocent, yeah? You were simply being a gentleman?" she asked. He nodded, and she relaxed, looking down in embarrassment. Then she frowned.

"So why am I in my underwear?" she asked.

"Well, you took your sweats off to go for a swim and I guess I forgot to pick them up for you."

"Oh, okay. Erm…how am I gonna get back to my cabin in just this without arousing suspicion?" she asked.

"Suspicion wouldn't be the only thing you 'aroused'." He said, without thinking. She laughed, rolling her eyes, but her cheeks were a little warm.

"God, you're such a guy." She muttered. He shrugged, face reddening slightly.

"Sorry, that just slipped out. Do you, erm, wanna borrow some sweats?" he offered. She shrugged.

"Wouldn't that look just as suspicious?" she asked. He nodded.

"Well yeah, but if it's a choice between doing the supposed 'walk of shame' in your underwear and doing it in my sweats…"

"Sweats, please." She said hurriedly. He nodded.

"Thought so."

"Look, thanks for everything, but this doesn't change anything. I still don't like you, and you still don't like me, right?" she asked as she pulled on his sweats, trying not to stare at him. He'd gotten out of bed and Ally had discovered that Austin Moon sleeps in tight black boxers. And he has a _really _nice body.

"Yeah, whatever." He dismissed it with a wave. She nodded, but couldn't help feeling a little disappointment at how easily he agreed with that.

"Okay, erm…I guess I'm going. I'll give you these back at some point."

"Don't worry about it, they're too small anyway." He shrugged. She nodded, face twisted in a confused frown.

"Okay, erm…bye." She muttered, averting her eyes as he stretched.

"Bye."

And then she left.

**REVIEW BBYS? ILY ALL!**

**Thank you guys for reading, and if you missed the other update, please check out the poll on my profile! it's really important for something I'm planning for the future and I'd really appreciate your input! Thankyou!**

**Okay, if you're still reading, first of all, well done! Thank you for caring about my incessant babbling! I want to start something, like, almost a song recommendation thing, for each chapter I upload. So right now, i'm going to cover all the chapters I've already uploaded, and then I'll do the rest as I update.**

**Chapter 1: **Mean**, by Taylor Swift. **

Okay, lets get one thing **straight;** its not a song that fits perfectly, or even decently, with the theme of the chapter. It's just the kind of feeling of the song, and the melody, kind of sets the scene for the chapter.

Ally is so mean to Austin and at first it's just like a bitch and there's no reason like she's just a horrible person. So yeah, that's why.

**Chapter 2: **Icebox**, by Omarion. **

Because Ally is very cold and it's a really good song and it's got a really good beat and yeah, it sort of starts to show the way she's feeling...mainly the chorus, to be honest. The chorus is kind of exactly how Ally feels, even if she may not realise it, and that's really the kind of atmosphere I think the chapter has.

**Chapter 3: So obviously the song of the chapter is Heartbeat, because Austin sings it. But for these purposes, it's** This Ain't a Scene, It's an Arms Race **by Fall Out Boy. **

This is an amazing song by an amazing band and it's really quite angry and its just the kind of atmosphere i want to set for this chapter. Kind of. It makes sense to me, but maybe not to you. Listen to the song anyway. I love it.

**Chapter 4: **Animal, **by Neon Trees.**

Just listen. I can't even explain the pure genius of this song. Or any of this group's songs. It's just...argh. And the chorus, again, especially suits the feels of this on.

**So yeah, that's all from me til the next update. Hope you liked it. Review?**

**-Kacey **


	5. Changing Relationships

Chapter 5

The next two weeks of camp were pretty great. Ally and Austin still didn't like each other, trading insults and dirty looks whenever they were together, but they were a little less…biting. And neither of them said anything that they knew would _truly_ hurt the other. Austin even found himself apologising for one crude remark he made, but admittedly that was mostly due to the headlock Cassidy had him in until he said sorry.

The camp was six weeks long, and at the four week mark, Ally found herself feeling a little depressed, knowing that she would be leaving in two weeks. But she decided to put that to the back of her mind and focus on having fun. She had become closer to Cassidy and was even friendly with Tilly, although the ditzy blonde had some crazy idea that she had a thing with Austin, so a lot of the time she just irritated her. Every time Ally spoke to the guy, Tilly would glare at her as if she was insulting the blonde girl herself.

Dez was probably one of the funniest guys she had ever met. Yeah, he was an idiot, but he was always the first to crack a joke and make everyone smile. She'd become close enough to him that they could hang out, just the two of them, and not find it awkward, but she was reluctant to call him a 'friend', per say, due to his status as Austin's best friend.

And Dallas…Ally wasn't really sure how she felt about Dallas. She spoke to him a lot more than she spoke to most guys back in Miami, but they _definitely _weren't friends. She thought he was cute, and sometimes, when their finger's brushed or they bumped hips as they were walking, her stomach would do a strange little flip.

They were all hanging out in Tilly's cabin, playing spin the bottle, when it happened. It was Ally's turn, and for a moment it looks suspiciously like the bottle would land on a certain blond boy that she certainly wouldn't like to have to kiss. But no, Ally sighed in relief when the bottle passed over the blonde and stopped on Dallas. Their eyes met and she smiled a little awkwardly. Tilly grinned, clapping her hands enthusiastically.

"Come on guys, you know what you have to do." She smirked. Ally shrugged at the unspoken question in his eyes and leant towards him. He smiled and did the same.

Ally's eyes fluttered closed as their lips met. Seven seconds, that was the rule. Well, the rule Tilly had come up with when they started playing. But Dallas's lips were so _soft, _and his hand that moved to rest on her waist where her shirt had ridden up a little was so _warm…_

They sprang apart at the sound of someone clearing their throat beside them and Ally sat back down, flushing.

"Erm, Ally…?" she looked up at the sound of Dallas' voice, smiling.

"Yeah?"

"Do you wanna, erm…do you want to go for a walk?" he asked. She smiled, glancing at Cassidy. Her friend nodded, winking, making Ally blush harder and then get to her feet, smiling at Dallas.

"Wait!" Austin protested. Dallas looked at him, frowning, and Ally just glared.

"What?" Tilly asked.

"Erm…we were all hanging out. I just don't think it's fair for them to leave…" he muttered half-heartedly, refusing to meet anyone's eyes.

"Hush, Moon. We can hang out anytime. You two go on." Cassidy beamed at Ally, motioning for the two of them to leave. Ally shot Austin a half-hearted glare, but she was mostly too distracted by the thought of being alone with Dallas to be angry at him.

Ally smiled at Dallas once they were outside the cabin.

"So…how are you?" she knew it was lame, but it was a conversation starter.

"I'm okay. Great, actually. You know, you're a really good kisser." He complimented her. She blushed.

"I've had a lot of practice." She joked. Dallas' face fell slightly and she rolled her eyes at herself.

"Oh, I see…"

"I don't know why I said that, please forget I did…I'm not a slut. I've only ever kissed a guy once."

"But you've kissed loads of girls, right?" he joked, elbowing her playfully. She pouted.

"That was one time! And we were drunk!"

"You weren't that drunk…but don't worry, there isn't one of us who hasn't made out with Cassidy at least once. Even Austin has, and he's probably the biggest prude you'll ever meet." He said. Her expression hardened at the mention of Austin.

"Why would any girl want to kiss him?" she said spitefully, without thinking. Dallas stopped walking, shaking his head.

"Okay, look, I know you and Austin don't get along, and that's fine. Each to his own. But Austin is one of my best friends, Ally. And I like you. Like, a lot. A whole lot. But if you're going to insult him every time I mention his name…I can't do this." She knew he was giving her an ultimatum and she knew whatever she said now would make or break things between her and Dallas.

"You're right, that was thoughtless of me. I know you're close, I was out of order. I'm sorry." She said. He nodded, accepting her apology, and started walking again. She then smiled.

"So…you like me, hmm? Like, a whole lot?" she asked. Now it was his turn to blush, but he nodded.

"Yeah, I do. I've been trying to work up the courage to ask you out for a while now. Tonight seemed kinda like fate, if you ask me."

"Well, you want to know a secret?"

"Sure…"

"I kinda like you too. Like, a whole lot." They both grinned at each other.

"So, Ally Dawson, would you like to go out with me?" Dallas asked, grinning widely. She giggled.

"I'd love to!" she said enthusiastically, throwing her arms around him in a hug. He laughed happily, hugging her back.

"So…I usually don't kiss until the third date, but we've already passed that milestone, so…" Ally said as she pulled back. Dallas leant forward and kissed her for the second time that evening, this time deepening it. She gasped as he nibbled her bottom lip and eventually pulled away, resting her forehead against his.

"You know, you're a pretty good kisser yourself."

"It's all the practice." He mocked her, winking.

"Erm, guys?" they jumped apart, also for the second time that evening, and Ally blushed, refusing to meet Austin's gaze. She wasn't sure why she was so embarrassed.

"Whassup Austin?" Dallas asked, slinging an arm around Ally's shoulder causally. She smiled, leaning into his side instinctively. Austin looked away, feeling his stomach flip. He put it down to the chicken he'd had for lunch.

"We're putting a movie on, and Cassidy told me to come and tell you, see if you wanted to join us." He mumbled quietly, scuffing the ground with his toes.

"Sure, c'mon Als." Dallas nodded, pulling Ally in the direction of the cabin. She smiled lovingly at the nickname.

"What are we watching?" she asked Austin. It was a simple question, but one that made Austin's shoulder's tense due to the asker.

"Dunno." He mumbled. Ally sighed, rolling her eyes, biting back a snarky comment.

…

"You know, Ally, you've changed a lot." Dianne commented breezily as she fried some bacon for breakfast. Ally had just woken up and walked into the kitchen, smiling at her mother.

"You think so? It's only been five weeks, mom." She sighed, saddened by the reminder that there was only a week left of camp.

"I've seen kids come here, biggest little twerps I've ever met, and within days they've been lovely, caring individuals. It's less to do with the amount of time, and more to do with the people here and your attitude. You've made friends, had fun…I think that was all you needed, all this time. Some real friends and some good, honest fun." Her mother explained. Ally nodded, realising that she was right.

"I guess you're right. I mean, back home, it was so much easier to pretend to be someone I wasn't. To be a bitch. When I treat people like shit, other people are scared of treating me like shit, so they're nice to me. I guess…I guess I'd managed to fool myself into thinking that those people were my friends. I think I had myself fooled with a lot of things. People I thought I hated…maybe if I gave them a chance, I'd have liked them. Maybe I wouldn't have so many enemies now. And maybe…maybe somebody would care that they hadn't seen me for five weeks." She sighed. Dianne wrapped her arms around her daughter.

"Don't worry, Ally, everything will work out fine in the end. You still have a week left of camp, and then you can go home for a while, see your friends, and maybe try to work things out. But in the meantime, just enjoy your last week of camp. I have to go home tonight, I'll be leaving at seven, so I've no doubt there'll be some kind of party tonight. Have fun, but please, stay safe." She smiled. Ally nodded, beaming as her mother handed her a plate of bacon, beans and toast.

"Mmm, this looks great mom! And I promise, I'll be good." She assured her, before tucking into the breakfast.

"I know you will, Ally. You're a good girl. You've always been a good girl." She muttered as she tucked into her own food. Ally smiled to herself.

…

"Here you go, Als." Dallas handed her a red plastic cup, half vodka, half cola. She beamed at him, kissing him on the cheek sloppily before taking a big gulp. He laughed and kissed her on the mouth, then told her to go dance with Cassidy, who was beckoning her over drunkenly. More people were drinking this time, and they were drinking more. Without Dianne's presence at camp, even the other staff members loosened up, and there was only one person over the age of 21 at the party.

After dancing with Cassidy for a few minutes, Ally suddenly felt her stomach twist and knew she was going to throw up.

"Backinaminute." She slurred in Cassidy's ear.

She stumbled outside, leaning against the railings and taking deep breaths. It didn't help much, however, and a second later she found herself on her knees, emptying her stomach into the grass.

It was like this that Austin found her, and being the gentleman that he is, he just had to help her.

"Ally, are you okay?" he asked, kneeling down beside her and pulling her hair out of her face. She groaned, looking up at him.

"No, not really." She croaked, voice hoarse. He chuckled dryly.

"Sorry, stupid question really."

"You think?"

He rubbed her back soothingly as she threw up again.

Ten minutes later, she was wiping her mouth and getting to her feet shakily.

"Do you feel okay?" he asked her warily. She nodded, smiling weakly.

"Better. Thanks."

"It's okay. Look, you probably shouldn't go back to the party. Do you want me to go find Dallas to take you home?" he offered. She shook her head.

"Nah, he's having fun, leave him. I'll go home myself." She muttered, heading in the general direction of her cabin. Austin debated for a minute or two, and then followed her. He knew he'd hate himself for it, but he couldn't let her go off alone in her state. He'd been drinking himself, but not nearly as much as her.

"Ally, wait up!" he called after her. She turned, frowning.

"What?"

"Nothing. I'm just gonna walk with you. Just in case you hurt yourself or something." He shrugged. She smiled softly, not letting him see.

"Thanks."

"S'okay."

They walked in silence for a while, until he stopped. Confused, she looked at him.

"Are you okay?"

"Ally, why do you feel the need to be such a bitch to me when you're sober?" he blurted. Her eyes widened and she stepped back, surprised.

"Erm…I don't really know. We just…we just don't like each other."

"No, that's not it. I mean, I don't dislike you that much. Not since the last time you got drunk…but you kept being a bitch, so I did the same. And sometimes, you do make me want to slap you. But I still don't hate you, and I don't understand why you can't just apologise, and then I can apologise, and we can be friends!"

"Because we can't be friends." She said softly.

"But why?"

"Because you're a geek, Austin! You've always been the typical geek, with the glasses and the braces and you even used to have a damn lisp! And then when I got here, and I saw you…no, you don't _look _like a geek anymore, but you're still smart and when we go back to school, you're still going to be at the bottom of the food chain, because that's just how things work!" she yelled. Her anger and the throwing up had sobered her up, and now she was just a little tipsy and very pissed off. Austin reddened with anger too.

"So what? Are you really that pathetic? I thought you'd changed, Ally! I mean, you've still been bitchy towards me, but to everyone else…you're like a different person, Ally! But as soon as you talk to me, it's like you're back to your old self! Why is that?"

"You want the truth?" she breathed, shaking. He rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, the truth would be nice."

"Because if I stop being a bitch, and I let myself get close to you, I think I might fall in love with you…"

**Thanks for reading! Sorry about the slight cliffhanger ending :)**

**REVIEW IF YOU WANT MOREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!**

**The song of this chapter is: **Lightweight, **by Demi Lovato **

**Check this song out if you don't know it because anbdubhefuoerfvonoieuef it's perfect omg.**

**Thanks for your support!**

**-Kacey **


	6. This Is So Wrong But Please Don't stop

**OMG Guys! **

**Thank you so much for all the reviews on chapter five! I got way more than usual! You're so amazing ankbfibef**

**I hope you like this chapter and well yeah. **

**So if anyone cares about my life, I went to a nightclub for the second time in my life on Wednesday and aknfunrfoubr best thing ever! Although I still cant hear properly because it was LOUD. And like when I got home I didn't sleep til about five because I was hyped up on Red Bull. (Before you freak out, it was an under-sixteen's night. I still have three years before I'm eighteen and can really go and drink and stuff sadly) And it made my tummy all funny and I had to get up at half eight the next morning but I STILL utilised that time and kind of brainstormed ideas (because I come up with my best ideas when I'm exhausted and hyped up at the same time at five in the morning.) so I now have like a bazillion (17-ish) potential stories written in my cute little FF notebook (it's Moshi Monsters-if you don't know what that is then you haven't lived) so you wont be seeing the back of me anytime soon!**

**So, yeah, that was just to let you know how overactive my imagination is :D **

**Enjoy!**

Chapter 6

"What?" Austin stuttered, after a moment's silence. Ally blushed, looking away.

"Nothing. Just…forget I said anything."

"No. Ally…you barely even know me!"

"There's a reason for that." Her voice was dry, resigned.

"But…you're dating Dallas!"

"I never said I was in love with you, Austin. But you're the kinda guy I've always fallen for in the past. Sweet, innocent, tall, blonde, incredibly hot…If I do get to know you, and I do like you…even if we were just friends, when we go back to school, things will go back to the way they were."

"They wouldn't have to, Ally. You could change…you could stop pretending."

"But I don't want to. I like my life how it is."

"Sure you do."

"For fuck's sake, Austin, you don't know me! Stop acting like you do!" she yelled, losing her temper. He stepped towards her.

"What if I said I do want to know you? I want to be your friend. I want to talk to you. I don't know how to explain it, but there's something about you…I want to know you. I want to touch you," he said this softly, moving his hand up to caress her face softly. She gulped, "I want to love you." He whispered softly, leaning in so that their lips were almost touching.

She should have moved away. She should have pushed him off her, told him to go get a life and stop creeping on his friend's girlfriend. She should have said no.

"Why?" she breathed, choosing to go with her heart, not her head.

"Because you're beautiful. And I've always been good at reading people. And underneath all your bitchiness, I can see that you're hurting." He said.

"Or maybe you're just imagining it. Did you ever stop to think that maybe I'm just a bitch?" she asked, voice raised, as she moved away from him. He looked a little disappointed for a second, and then shook his head.

"No, you're not."

"Don't tell me what I am and what I'm not, Austin!" she screamed.

"Calm down, Ally!"

"No, I won't calm down! All my life, people have left me. My mom left me before I was even old enough to understand why. My best friends all moved away from Miami over the years, so by the time I got to high school I had to make all new friends! Then Joey left me, because I wouldn't put out, and then I left Miami and nobody cared which is even worse. And now I'm going to leave here in a week and everyone is going to forget me and…why can't you just accept that I'm a bitch and move on?"

"Because you're not!"

"Yes, I am. And I hate you. I want you to leave!" she yelled, staring at a spot over his shoulder. He shook his head, moving towards her.

"No, Ally, you don't hate me."

"Yes I fucking do!"

"Ally, look me in the eyes and tell me you hate me." He said calmly. She shook her head.

"Don't tell me what to do. Just go away."

"Look, if you do this, I'll go away and leave you alone for good. Look me in the eyes and tell me that you hate me and that you want me to leave."

She let out the breath she'd been holding, looking up to meet his gaze. She opened her mouth to speak, but found herself unable. She was lost in his chocolate brown eyes, caught like a deer in headlights.

"I hate-" she managed to choke out, but before she could finish what she was saying, his mouth was on hers. She gasped as an electric shock ran through her body at the contact, and then his hands were on her hips and her hands were in his hair and all she could think about was his body against hers and his lips on her own and his _hands…_

"This is wrong." He panted as they pulled away for air. She nodded, and then started trailing red hot kisses down his neck, making him throw his head back and groan softly in the back of his throat.

"We shouldn't be doing this." He murmured as they stumbled up the steps to her cabin door.

"Nope." She agreed as she slid the little key into the lock, sighing as he started sucking on a spot on the side of her neck.

"You're dating Dal-" she didn't let him finish, pulling his face down to meet hers as she pushed the door open and dragged him inside.

She moved away from him for a few seconds to lock the door behind them, and then looked back at him. He was looking around, short of breath. She smiled at the redness of his face and his ruffled hair.

"Ally, are you-"

"Don't ask questions. This is what it is, don't ruin it." She murmured as she kissed him again, leading I'm into her bedroom. Once inside, she found herself dragging his shirt over his head. This seemed to shock him into realising what was going on, and suddenly, he was smirking.

Turning them around, he pushed her back against the door, kissing down her neck and chest as he slowly undid the buttons on her blouse. She slid a knee between his legs, licking her lips, and he closed his eyes, fighting back a groan at the feeling.

"Ally…"

"Yeah?" she asked, looking innocent.

Instead of responding, he simply pulled the shirt off her shoulders, breath hitching at the sight of her bare torso. She smiled.

"Like what you see, Moon?" she asked cockily. He raised an eyebrow.

"Do you?"

"Oh, definitely." She nodded, pointedly checking him out and then leaning forward to grab his waist and plant a kiss on his abdomen, just below his navel. He shivered, closing his eyes tightly as she fiddled with the button on his jeans and slid them down his legs. He stepped out of them, smiling as he copied her actions with her skirt.

When they were both stripped down to their underwear, he pushed her back against the door and kissed her again, hands exploring her body. After a minute or so, she felt his fingers on her bra strap and pulled away for a second.

"I'm not having sex against a door when there's a bed like, a metre away." She breathed. He quirked an eyebrow.

"So we're actually doing this then?" he asked. She nodded, biting her lip.

"Yeah, I guess we are…I've never done this before, Austin." She admitted. He smiled.

"Look, we don't have to…"

"No, I want to. I just…"

"I know what you mean. Anyway, I've only had sex twice…don't worry, we can stop anytime you want."

"Can we? I'd think you're a little too far gone to stop now…" she said, looking down at his crotch pointedly. He blushed.

"Have you seen yourself, Ally? It's not surprising that I'm this turned on…" he smiled. She laughed, pulling him over to the bed.

"Come on, Moon. Kiss me." She instructed him, and he didn't have to be told twice.

…

Ally groaned as her eyes fluttered open the next morning. She, once again, had a pounding headache, and her entire body ached. At least she was in her own bed this time, she thought to herself. Closing her eyes, she rolled over, planning to bury her head in the pillow and go back to sleep. But to her dismay, when she rolled over, she hit a barrier.

Well, not exactly a barrier. More like a body. A very warm, very _naked b_ody. And with that, memories of the night before came flooding back and she gasped.

"Fuck!" she shouted, clambering backwards and falling off the edge of the bed. Austin groaned, rubbing his face and opening one eye.

"You said that last night." He drawled, winking and smirking at her. She glared at him, but then found herself unable to hold back laughter.

"I don't believe you." She chuckled, shaking her head. He smiled, sitting up and stretching. She watched, admiring the way his muscles were defined by his tanned skin.

"You did. You also said something like 'Austin, you're a sex God'." He said. She rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, sure I did. And that wasn't what I meant. God, I can't believe I had sex with you. Oh my God, I had sex with you!" she gasped, the true magnitude of her situation finally hitting her. He sighed, nodding.

"I knew you'd be angry."

"I'm not angry, I'm just…I can't believe it. I'm dating Dallas!" she groaned. He winced.

"I know…God, I can't believe I did that to him. Even if I was drunk…I'm a shitty friend." He said dejectedly. They sat in silence for a while, and then Ally got up off the floor and back into the bed. They weren't touching, but she could feel the warmth from his body and couldn't help but want him again.

"Wow. We really fucked things up, didn't we?" she sighed. He nodded.

"Just a bit."

"I need to leave." She said decidedly. He frowned, glancing at her.

"What? Why?"

"I can't face him, not after this. Besides, there's only a few days left of camp. I know, I'm a coward, and a bitch. But I can't-" she stopped, choking on the words as she fought back tears. Austin thought for a second, but knew he wasn't going to be able to change her mind. She had that look on her face, the one he'd seen a few times before. The one that she got when she was set on something, and he knew he wouldn't be able to convince her otherwise.

"Fine. I guess…I guess I'll see you in school." He sighed, getting out of bed and grabbing his clothes. She nodded, averting her eyes as he pulled on his boxers.

"Austin, when we go back to school…"

"I know. This doesn't change anything. I'm still the geek, and you're the queen bee. I get it. But remember, it's never too late to change. You can always just stop pretending."

"Yeah, I know. But if I stop pretending, I'll inevitably get hurt."

"Maybe…goodbye, Ally." He sighed, sliding his feet into his sneakers and walking out, not looking back.

…

"You can't leave now, Ally!" her mother protested. Ally sighed.

"I have to, mom. I did something stupid, and I can't stay here anymore."

"What did you do?"

"I can't tell you."

"Allyson Marie Dawson, I am your mother, you can tell me anything. No matter what, I love you and I'm here for you." She said seriously, and suddenly, Ally couldn't take it anymore. She burst into tears, collapsing into her mother's arms. And then she told her everything.

…

Her dad arrived to pick her up at three o'clock that afternoon.

"Hey sweetie…" he said warily. She beamed at him, throwing her arms around his neck.

"I missed you daddy. I'm so sorry about how I was…I realise I was an idiot, and you didn't deserve any of the crap I put you through. I'm sorry."

"Wow…Its okay, I guess." He murmured, taken aback by his daughter's apology. He wasn't expecting that. That's an understatement. Honestly, he was completely bewildered by this seemingly different person.

"No, it's not okay, but I'll make up for it." She promised, smiling and pecking him on the cheek before going around to the other side of the car and getting in.

"Who are you and what have you done with my daughter?" he asked, jokingly, as he got into the car himself. She smiled, a little sadly.

"I'm still me, dad. I just…grew up a little." she felt even sadder at the proud look on his face, grateful that he didn't know the real reason she was leaving…

…

When Cassidy realised Ally wasn't in her cabin and all of her stuff was gone, the first thought that entered her mind was 'she's moved cabins'. So she then hunted down Dianne and asked her where Ally had moved to. Dianne proceeded to smile sadly, placing a comforting hand on the girl's shoulder, and tell her that her friend hadn't moved cabins, and that she had, in fact, left the camp.

Cassidy was slightly shell-shocked as she made her way to the canteen to join Tilly, Dallas, Dez and Austin at their table. They all smiled at her, but everyone except Tilly faltered at her downcast expression.

"What's up Cass?" Dallas was the first to ask. She took a seat, shaking her head in confusion.

"Ally's gone. She left. I don't…she's gone." They could see the sadness and anger in her eyes, but mostly, Cassidy was just bewildered. They all were, except for Austin. They'd only known Ally for a few weeks, yet the thought that she was actually gone…

"What?" Dallas was the first to speak, jumping to his feet. Austin tried to control the guilty expression threatening to push its way onto his face.

"She left yesterday. Her dad came and picked her up. Dianne told me. She said…she said Ally screwed up and couldn't face the consequences." Cassidy repeated the words that had been running through her mind since her conversation with Dianne. Dallas sat back down, thinking hard, and they were all silent for a while. Eventually, Cassidy noticed the look on Austin's face and something clicked.

"Austin, can I speak to you? In private?" she said sternly. Sighing, he nodded and got to his feet.

He followed her out of the canteen until they were completely in private. Then she stopped and rounded on him.

"What the fuck did you do, Austin?" she hissed, glaring at him. He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"You're going to kill me…"

"You didn't hit her, did you? Oh my God, you hit her, didn't you?"

"No!"

"Then what? Did you say something? Call her a name? Take things too far?"

"No, actually, quite the opposite."

"So, what, she left because you _ignored _her?" she scoffed. He rolled his eyes at her inability to get the hint.

"Oh my God, Cass, are you that thick? I didn't do anything like that!"

"Then what did you do?"

"I fucking slept with her!" he shouted, losing his temper.

"What?"

They both whirled around to see Dez and Tilly in the doorway. And right behind them, looking murderous, was Dallas.

**Woooooooo they did the nasty finally BUT already we have complications! ;)**

**Okay so...I have a sister who is an author on the site and she's a lot younger than me but she's convinced she sucks at writing and wont do it anymore so can I ask a huge favour? Will y'all go check out her story? Her pen name is xX Jellybean Xx and her story is 'Mistakes Can Be Made' I think it's really good considering her age so please, even if you just read a little, let her know it's good and tell her to keep writing? :)**

**Song for this chapter: **Taking Over Me, **by ****Lawson **

**Okay so it's far from completely relevant but the kind of feel and the lines in the chorus is sort of what I would imagine Austin to be feeling at the time and its just a really good song yeah? **

**Anyway, please, if you like this story and this chapter, PLEASE GO VOTE ON THE POLL ON MY PROFILE PAGE PLEASE!**

**And, yeah, REVIEW! See if we can beat chapter 5's record? **

**Love you! Thanks for reading!**

**-Kacey :)**


	7. Back To School

**Hey guys! **

**So, less reviews last chapter which is a little discouraging considering what happened but I'm still grateful for the reviews I did get! **

**But seriously guys, it's hard to understand unless you're an author yourself but when you don't get many reviews it's so disheartening and it really doesn't help motivation at all so please, review yeah? Even just a couple words to let them know you like it. Not just for me but for anything you read and enjoy? Thank you.**

**So anyway, sorry about the wait after the events of last chapter but at least it wasn't a cliffhanger right? :) Hope you like this one!**

**Enjoy!**

Chapter 7

Ally stayed home for the rest of the summer, only leaving the house once to empty the mailbox. She was so confused and upset and she just didn't know what to do with herself. She'd always thought that losing her virginity would be a big deal, and that she would regret it and it would hurt, but she also always imagined that it would be with some popular, gorgeous football player or maybe even a college guy, like all her friends. She never imagined that she would lose her virginity to Austin Moon. And especially not while she was dating someone else.

But the main thing was that she found herself not regretting it as much as she should. She wished, of course, that she hadn't done it while dating someone else, but if she could have gone back in time and changed her mind…she wouldn't have.

Dallas had texted her a couple of days after she got home.

**I never would have thought you were the type of girl to run away rather than breaking up with a guy. We're done. Have a nice life.**

The message was too vague for her to figure out whether or not he knew about her and Austin, so she did her best to push away all the memories of the cute brunette whose heart she had probably broken.

…

When it was finally time to go back to school, Ally was surprised to find herself dreading it. She'd never _enjoyed _school, per se, but it was always something she had conquered…she was top of the food chain, and nobody messed with her. She could go about her own business with little interruption. But after being out of contact with all her 'friends' over summer, she wasn't sure where she would stand. She was sure she would have lost all her popularity and be ignored by everybody.

And this is why she was so surprised when she walked out of her front door and found Trish waiting for her, smiling that same fake smile she'd seen so often over the last few years. She immediately found herself comparing her supposed 'bestie' to Cassidy, even as she squealed and hugged the Latino girl and told her how much she'd missed her.

"Oh God, Ally, no-one has seen or heard from you all summer! Where have you been?" she exclaimed, linking their arms as they started down the street.

"Well, after the incident with the car at school, dad decided he couldn't deal with me anymore and sent me to spend the summer at my mom's music camp..." she explained. Trish winced, looking apologetic.

"Oh Lord, sounds positively _terrible. _Camp! Urgh…and your mom, as well…did you speak to her at all? Let her know what a trampy, slutty, fugly bitch she is?" even though Trish was simply repeating the things that Ally had said about her mother herself before, Ally found herself reddening with anger.

"Trish, don't you dare talk about my mother that way." She muttered darkly. Trish's eyes widened at her threatening tone but she nodded and apologised quietly.

They walked the rest of the way to school in a tense silence, but when they got there and saw the rest of their friends waiting for them outside of the gates they both plastered on fake smiles and ran over, greeting everyone with as much enthusiasm as they could muster. When they walked into school and everyone moved out of their way as usual, Ally sighed in quiet relief. Everything was okay, nothing had changed.

And then her eyes met Austin's.

…...

"Ally, are you okay?" Trish asked when she suddenly stopped walking, frozen in shock.

"Ally, that new guy is staring at you." Debra said shrilly, pointing to Austin who scoffed and rolled his eyes. As soon as they parted gazes, Ally jumped into action.

"Sorry guys, I'm just tired. Erm, Deb, that's not a new guy. That's _Austin." _She corrected her friend. She spoke loudly, knowing that if she tried to be quiet some of the confusion and fright and _temptation _would be obvious in her voice. She glanced over at Austin again, and found herself unable to look away from the faded black eye.

"Whoa, Austin? As in, Austin _Moon?" _Trish gasped, eyes wide in shock. Ally nodded, dragging her eyes away from the blond.

"Whoa, he's _hot." _Ally's head whipped around to glare at the Latino automatically.

"Trish!" she instantly regretted the reprimand, not wanting anyone to notice her jealousy and think something of it, but luckily Trish interpreted it as simply anger, knowing how much her friend hated Austin.

"Sorry, I meant stupid! He's stupid! He probably thinks he actually looks _good _without his braces and glasses, but he doesn't, he just looks…stupid." She amended and Ally nodded, satisfied.

"Yeah, well, we all know that it takes longer than one summer to change things." She said loudly, refusing to meet Austin's gaze again. She knew he would be hurt, but she had to let him know that nothing was different between them before he said or did anything to ruin everything.

They continued walking down the corridor towards homeroom, and Ally refused to even glance at Austin as she approached. She was walking a little behind all her friends, and as they passed the blond she felt her heart speed up. She managed to refrain from looking at him, though…at least, until she felt him reach out and squeeze her ass.

"Ah!" she squealed, jumping in shock. Her friends whirled around, worried, and she glared at Austin. He put his hands in the air to signal his innocence, but she could see the mocking glint in his eyes. He was daring her; daring her to make a scene. She just scowled and tossed her hair, catching up with her friends and assuring them that she was fine, she'd just seen a spider and gotten spooked.

…

Ally sat quietly in homeroom, ignoring Trish's many vain attempts to get her to talk, until Austin walked in. He came in backwards, laughing as he said goodbye to a friend, and then turned around and searched for a seat. There were two; one at the front, where he usually sat, and one right at the back. Consequently, the second was also next to Ally. And, of course, he would take that one.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath as he approached the back row, smirking cockily. She just ignored him, staring straight in front of her. Trish was too distracted by her phone to even notice that Austin had sat there. Austin took this opportunity to lean over and whisper in Ally's ear.

"Hey sexy." His warm breath on her ear made her shiver, which only made Austin smirk even more.

"Austin." Her voice was low; a warning.

"What?" he asked, expression innocent.

"You know what. I can't believe what you did! What if someone saw?"

"Ally, it's not like I'm going to tell anyone I slept with you."

"Yes, but of you suddenly start sitting by me in lessons and _groping me _in the hallway, people will get suspicious!" she hissed. He chuckled.

"I'm sorry, but you just look so good in those jeans…and it doesn't help that I can't get the image of you _out of _those jeans out of my head." She wanted to slap him, but she knew that wasn't meant to be crude. He was being serious; he honestly couldn't stop thinking about it. At least now she knew she wasn't the only one.

"What happened to your eye?" she asked, changing the subject. He laughed humourlessly.

"Cassidy noticed something was up, and I was telling her what happened…Dez, Tilly and Dallas overheard."

"Oh my God! Dallas _punched _you?" she exclaimed. A couple people turned around at that, so she quickly faked a look of anger and disgust, while Austin followed suit. A couple people murmured, suspicious, but most seemed to accept that they were just pissing each other off.

"Actually, no, Dallas just called me a lying, cheating, backstabbing dickhead. It was Tilly that punched me. That girl has a mean right hook." He explained. She couldn't help but snort a little at that, before she realised that he was serious.

"Oh…so Dallas did find out?"

"Yeah…sorry. I didn't want to tell him." He looked honestly apologetic.

"No, it's okay, I'm glad. I just…I liked him, maybe not in a sexual way, but he was really sweet and…I didn't want to hurt him."

"Tell me about it. We've never been the closest of friends, but this year we bonded a little more and I thought we had a chance of becoming real close, you know? But now he's going to hate me forever. Honestly, even I hate me right now." Ally winced, a little hurt that he would say he hated himself for sleeping with her.

"So…so you regret it?" she asked quietly. He furrowed his brows and opened his mouth to reply, but Trish interrupted.

"Erm, Ally…?" she asked, finally prying herself away from her phone screen. Ally jumped, looking at her friend. She'd completely forgotten about Trish…what if she'd heard their conversation?

"Erm, you and Moon were looking a little cosy…I was worried about your sanity." She said, glaring at the blond boy over Ally's shoulder.

"Ugh, as if. I was just explaining to him why he can't sit by me. Obviously he's so thick that he doesn't understand basic etiquette." Austin sighed, rolling his eyes and getting to his feet.

"Fine, I'll move. But seriously? How old are you?" he barked, angrily making his way to the seat at the front of the classroom. Somehow, Ally knew that he was genuinely angry. And he meant what he said, but maybe not in the same way that Trish thought he meant it.

"That guy seriously needs to grow up."

"Yeah, he does…" Ally agreed half-heartedly, and by some miracle, Trish didn't notice her reluctance to say it.

…

**Sorry sweetie, I got held up at work. I'll be here all night, so I can't pick you up. Can you walk home? Love you. Dad x**

Ally read the text and fought back a scream of frustration. Everything was going wrong for her today. Her dad was supposed to pick her up because she hated walking home on her own. Trish had left early for a dentist appointment and none of her other friends lived near her. She knew any of them would walk with her if she asked them to, but she didn't want to. Trish was the only one of her friends that she actually had anything in common with.

Groaning quietly, she shouldered her backpack and started out of the parking lot. She'd barely left school grounds when the drops of rain fell and she groaned loudly. It hardly ever rained in Miami, but of course it would today. She should have expected it, really. Laughing cynically, she continued her journey.

Five minutes later, a very familiar car slowed and came to a halt next to her on the road. Rolling her eyes, she sped up a little, but the car drove on and stopped next to her again. This happened a few times before she finally broke into a run and turned into a small alley. She instantly regretted it; as a girl with claustrophobia, a fear of the dark and an addiction to crime drama's, running into a dark alley when it was pouring with rain was the stupidest thing she could have possibly done. She heard the car brake and the door open and close, and then footprints following her. She took a few more cautious steps and then felt something run over her foot. She screamed, whirling around and running back the way she'd come. She made it a few steps before tripping over something. With another loud scream she flew forwards, closing her eyes and waiting for contact. But then her head hit something solid, but soft, and there was a pair of warm arms closing around her and she threw her arms around the blonde boy, breathing in his familiar scent and trying to calm her breathing.

"Ally, Ally calm down, it's okay." Austin reassured her. She was shivering and babbling incoherently.

"Ally? Ally!"

"C-can we get out of h-h-here p-please?" she stammered.

"Of course, come on, I'll take you home." He helped her stumble over to his car and helped her clamber into the passenger seat, where she proceeded to curl up as small as she possibly could and rock herself back and forth. He watched her as he jogged around the car and got into the driver's side, starting the car and pulling off the sidewalk.

The heater's came on and Ally relaxed a little as she warmed up, but she was still shaking with fear. Eventually, as Austin prepared to turn into her street, she spoke.

"No, please…I don't want to go home. Dad isn't coming home tonight and I'm…I'm scared." She murmured. He nodded, continuing straight past the turning and turning on the radio.

"So…where do you want to go?"

"I don't know. I have nowhere to go. I have no-one. I've screwed everything up." She dissolved into tears and Austin winced, hating to see her like that. He sped up a little, deciding where he wanted to go.

"Don't think like that, Ally. You haven't screwed everything up. Things will get better."

"I don't think so. I have one real friend in the world, and I have to pretend to be someone I'm not to even be friends with her. I've completely alienated my dad and even now, I'm trying to make him proud of me and he's as distant as ever. But then I had the camp, and everything there was great, and I could be myself…I had great friends and I even had a boyfriend that I really liked. But then I lost my virginity to a guy who hates me, or who I thought hated me, and I had to leave and now they all hate me and even you hate me and everything's gone wrong and-why are we at the beach?" she looked out of the window and back to Austin, confused. He smiled, opening his door and getting out.

"It's stopped raining, and the beach is the place I always come when I'm confused or upset or just need a time out." He closed his door and made his way around to help Ally out. She sniffled, wiping her eyes.

"So…what are we going to do?" she asked. He smiled, grabbing her hand.

"Let's go swimming."

**Thanks for reading! Hope you liked it, next chapter shouldn't be long as long as you review! :)**

**Song of the chapter: **LaserLight, **by Jessie J **

_**The song has an amazing beat that kind of matches the mood of the chapter and the lyrics in the chorus really resemble the kind of things Ally is feeling towards Austin, even if she won't quite admit it to herself yet :)**_

**Thank you guys, please, stay safe and review! :D**

**-Kacey **


	8. Oh I Do Like To Be Beside the Seaside

**Hey friends! My sincere apologies for the long wait on this one, I've been so busy with school which sucks but hey, last year :D **

**Thankyou for all the reviews on the last chapter, it kind of hurts though to see that there's so many people who favorite and follow but don't take the time to drop a review, like really, would it kill you to spend an extra ten seconds just to let me know you're enjoying it?**

**Sorry, that sounded bitchy, it's just not fair and any author's reading this will totally understand how upsetting it is :/**

**So, on a brighter note, I'm having fun at school which is nice :) Obviously it's intense this year, with all these exams in nine months but I'm coping well :D **

**Oh and I really want to get to know you guys, especially dedicated readers who stick with me no matter how shitty my writing is, so please, get in touch! All my accounts, such as Kik, Twitter, Instagram etc are on my profile, or just drop me a message on PM though i may take longer to reply to that :) Don't be a stranger, I love meeting new people!**

**Hope you like the chapter! :)**

Chapter 8

Austin tugged on her hand before dropping it awkwardly, and then gestured for her to follow him as he started across the sand, but she stayed still, drawing circles in the sand with her toes.

"Ally, come on." He said. She looked up, brow furrowed.

"Why?"

"What do you mean?"

"Why are you being nice to me? Why did you pick me up? Why don't you hate me? I treat you like shit because of my _reputation. _I barely even know who I am anymore." She muttered. He sighed softly, approaching her and laying a hand on her shoulder comfortingly.

"I know you're confused, and you're upset, so I don't want to say anything right now because what I have to tell you is something you'll need a clear head to process. But trust me, come in the sea with me and you'll feel so much better." He said. Ally deliberated for a moment, but she wanted to know what Austin wanted to tell her, so she conceded.

"Alright." Austin beamed, reaching to grab her hand again then thinking better of it. She followed him across the sand towards the ocean. It hadn't rained much, but the sand was damp enough to stick to her battered converse. At least it was brighter now that the rainclouds had passed.

Austin sped up a little as he reached the water, laughing gleefully as he barrelled into the gentle waves, splashing about like a five-year-old. Ally laughed, unable to help herself. He looked so young and carefree.

After a minute or two he seemed to realise that Ally wasn't in the water with him and turned around to look at her, frowning.

"Are you coming in?" he asked, pouting a little.

"I don't know…"

"Come on, Ally, I promise you'll feel better." He said. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath in and nodded. She was in a foul mood and couldn't see herself having any fun, but Austin looked so cute, like a little puppy dog, and Ally couldn't say no.

"Fine, hang on, let me take off my shoes." She bent down; tugging on the laces and jogging a little further up to leave her converse under a little boulder in case it started raining again. Then she rolled up her jeans to just above the knee, so that they wouldn't get too wet.

She then made her way back over towards Austin, who was waiting, head cocked to the side as he watched her approach him. She was a little reluctant, but once her feet hit the cool water she felt her whole body relax and found herself wading in to meet Austin. She misjudged the depth of the water, since it only reached Austin's mid-thighs but on her, that was almost her waist.

"I guess there wasn't much point rolling my jeans up." She murmured dejectedly as she looked down at the waves lapping around the bottom of her shirt. Then she gasped, realising that she was wearing a $600 shirt and grabbed the hem to yank it up out of the reach of the waves. Austin raised an eyebrow.

"What're you doing Ally?" he asked.

"This shirt was really expensive and I don't want to ruin it with salt water." She shrugged. He laughed, rolling his eyes.

"Just take it off." He suggested as she pitifully tried to tie the tight material into a bow around her waist. Her head snapped up and her eyes widened, but he just laughed.

"C'mon, it's just us."

"Yeah, exactly…it's us." She replied. He looked confused for a second, and then smiled knowingly.

"Ally, it's not like I haven't seen you in a just bra before…hell, I've seen you _naked. _What's the point hiding from me? Besides, you wear bikinis to the beach. How is that any different?" she shrugged, realising that he had a point. Without further deliberation, she yanked the shirt over her head. Austin's breath hitched, but she'd already turned and started jogging back over to where she'd left her shoes. Austin turned around, shaking his head. He hadn't expected to react like that…but then again, he hadn't _really _expected Ally to actually take off her shirt. And she was wearing a particularly nice bra…not lingerie, just a padded demi-bra, but it was pink with black stripes and had a cute little cat one the right cup with a bow and a tiny little bell in the middle and it was going to take everything in him to keep his eyes on her face and not her boobs.

"Austin?" he jumped as her voice shocked him out of his daydream.

"I like cats!" he blurted, whirling around to face her. She frowned in confusion but shrugged it off.

"Okay…c'mon, are we just gonna stand in the water or are we gonna have some fun?" she asked, stepping back a little and smirking playfully. Austin opened his mouth to respond but then his breath caught as he stared at her. Ally followed his gaze, blushing as she realised why he was acting strange. She'd taken off her jeans to lay them out to dry, and was clad in just her bra and matching panties. They were pink and black, like the bra, but rather than a picture of a cat they had the word '_Purr-fect' _written in cursive script. She blushed madly, suddenly shy. Austin finally regained his composure and smiled sheepishly.

"Sorry, I was just…"

"Admiring the view?" she wasn't sure where that had come from. Sweet, virginal Ally Dawson would never have said anything like that. Then again, sweet, virginal Ally Dawson also would never have had sex with _Austin Moon _and be stood here with him right now, in the ocean, in just her underwear.

"Yeah…yeah, I guess I was."

"Hmm…it _is _a pretty nice view, if I do say so myself."

"Yeah, it is. Very sexy."

"I wouldn't go that far…"

"Oh, trust me; you're the sexiest thing I've seen in a while."

"You want sexy? I'll give you sexy…" Austin was shocked at her sudden boldness but decided to play along, desperate to see where this was going. He was glad he was wearing sweatpants, even though they were weighed down with water. If he'd been wearing jeans, they would be feeling particularly tight right about now…

She approached him slowly, cautiously. She knew what she wanted, and she knew he wanted it too. But she was nervous, afraid. It had been one thing at the camp, when she was almost-drunk and he was a little tipsy and she was away from home and everything was great. But right that moment, they were both stone-cold sober and back home in Miami, and everything in her life was fucked up. Yet she wanted this boy, this totally gorgeous blond nerd, more than she'd ever wanted anything in her life.

She breathed out shakily as she took one final step forward, raising her shaking hands to rest on his chest. He gulped, not sure what to do. He desperately wanted to kiss her, more than anything else in the world, but he didn't want to rush things and scare her off. Not again.

But then her lips were on his, tentative at first. His hands moved to her hips and then her back. She moaned at the trail of heat his hands left and slid her hands up his stomach to rest on his shoulders, making him shiver. As the kiss got more heated Austin's hands moved lower down and his tongue slipped into her mouth. She followed suit, tasting coffee and chocolate and peppermint. They pulled away to breathe and she nibbled his bottom lip, making him groan and pull her closer to him roughly. She was taken by surprised and stumbled, before being knocked completely off her feet by a wave. She squealed as she fell, pulling Austin with her. They were underwater for a few seconds before they both sat up, gasping for air. They looked at each other, Ally's long brown hair plastered to her face and neck and Austin's still looking perfectly beautiful, even full of sand and water, and laughed loudly. Their laughter soon dissolved, however, into more kisses, and they slowly drifted back towards the beach before collapsing onto the ground, lying next to each other, kissing as the waves tickled their feet.

Austin grunted and sat up suddenly, tugging his shirt over his head.

"This thing is full of sand and itches like a bitch. Sorry, that ruined the mood didn't it?" he sighed. Ally laughed, kneeling up behind him and wrapping her arms around his bare torso from behind. She kissed the back of his neck and rested her head on his shoulder, breathing softly onto the bare skin of his shoulder. Her eyes drifted closed, not with tiredness, but calmness.

"So, what was it you were going to tell me earlier? I think my head is pretty clear now…you were right, I feel much better. Although it has less to do with the ocean and more to do with you."

"I'm glad you feel better."

"Thanks, so am I. Now, answer my question." She said sternly. He sighed, wriggling around so that he was facing her. She smiled and sat back, covertly checking out his toned stomach as she waited for him to speak. She loved how he looked without a shirt on…the broad shoulders, muscular arms, cute little nipples that she just wanted to poke, toned stomach, and that oh-so-sexy '_Ally'_ tattoo above his navel…she gasped, jumping backwards onto the sand, shaking her head.

"You, you…you have a tattoo. Of my _name. _That-that wasn't there before." She stammered, eyes glued to the black ink on his skin. He sighed, rubbing his face.

"Yeah, erm…I can explain. See, Ally…I've liked you for a long time. I originally only noticed you because we shared a birthday, and then of course the bitchiness, but then you started to look _pretty_, and then you were getting popular and I just…I felt drawn to you. Like, I can't really explain it. I thought, I don't know, maybe I had a chance with you, but I never had the courage to talk to you. And then I got the braces and the glasses and I remember, the first birthday after I got them, we walked up to the front of the classroom and I smiled at you and you just…you frowned, like you had no idea who I was and why I was smiling at you, and then you just ignored me. And that…that broke my heart. So I decided I hated you, right then. I decided that it would be better to hate you that to have a crush on you and know that you're never like me back. And honestly? You made it quite easy. In fact, I think for a while I actually believed I did hate you. And then you showed up and camp, and I knew straight away; the feelings were stronger than ever." Ally stared, open-mouthed, as he poured his heart out.

"You liked me…all this time, you liked me? And I was just a first-class bitch." She muttered, mostly to herself.

"Yeah. Not gonna lie, you were. But then, at camp, you were different. I hadn't seen you like that, not for a long time. And you treated me different…you'd been bitchy to me before, but then you took it to a whole new level, and I didn't know why."

"It was because…because you were attractive. I mean, you always were, but the glasses and the braces made it easy to call you a geek and hate you. If I can stick a label on someone, it's much easier to deal with my feelings. But then you went and got hot. Like, really hot, and suddenly, you weren't a geek…you were a Hottie. Capital H. And I didn't know how to deal with that."

"So you pushed me away even more…"

"Until that night."

"Yeah. Until that night." They both trailed off and stayed in silence for a while, before Ally spoke again.

"So…why the tattoo?"

"Because after we had sex, I realised that you really are the girl I imagined you to be. You just hid behind a façade all these years. And I liked you even more. Maybe I…maybe I even fell in love with you. All I know is that I've never felt like this before, and the tattoo was the result of one too many shots at a party I went to after I got home from camp." Ally couldn't help but feel disappointed.

"Oh. So…the tattoo was a mistake?"

"No. I was drunk when I got it, but it wasn't a mistake. I don't regret it, not at all."

"Oh." She smiled, relieved.

"So…how do you feel?"

"About what?"

"About what I just told you."

"Oh, yeah, right. Of course. Erm…I don't know, Austin. I mean, I know I don't hate you, obviously." He snorted, getting to his feet, suddenly angry.

"Is that all you can say? I just confessed that I'm in love with you, and all you can say is that you don't _hate _me?" he snarled.

"No! I mean…ugh, I don't know, Austin. All I know is that I've never been so attracted to a guy before. And when we were kissing earlier…I felt like everything would be alright. And all I dream about, all I think about, is that night. And honestly? I want it to happen again. I want you, Austin. I want to go on dates with you, and kiss you, and have sex with you…I want all that. But I can't…I've pretended to be someone I'm not for so long, I can't just stop being Ally Dawson, Miami High's resident Queen Bitch. If we were together…it would have to stay a secret. At least for now. If that's not enough for you, then…I guess we're stuck." She looked down, hoping to God that it would be enough for him. He was silent for a while, and Ally thought for a second that he had left, but then she felt his arm around her shoulder and his lips on her forehead.

"Okay, Ally. Okay." He murmured into her skin, and she smiled.

She didn't know how she felt, or how she would feel in a few days, or how she would feel in a year. But one thing was for sure; she wanted Austin, and he wanted her, and maybe, just maybe, that was enough. For now, at least.

**So whatcha think? :)**

**Song of the chapter: **Two Pieces, **by Demi Lovato **

_It's a beautiful song about being in love and finding the other half of your soul and _Demi _is like my favourite artist in the world and her voice is like angels and just check it out it's perfect. Like Ally's pants. ;)_

**Thanks for reading, I love you people! Mwah!**

**-Kacey :)**


	9. Back to Normalish

**Who's the best?**

**I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that.**

**Me? Aw, shucks! **

**Seriously, though, I actually just finished the story! 22 Chapters! And since the last chapter was a longer wait than usual, I figured I'd treat you and upload early!**

**Also, I should currently be at school, but sadly after a very normal, straight up straight down vertical jump to throw a basketball went horribly horribly wrong and a trip to A&E, and then a different A&E, and a wheelchair that made a strange noise and an X-ray, (the nurse let me look at the pictures and explained the bones and wished me luck with school because my dad told her I want to be a doctor, how sweet!) I was told that my ankle wasn't broken, just badly sprained, I got home and went to bed, and when I woke up this morning I still couldn't walk so unfortunately school was out of the picture, but it did mean I got the chance to write and my mom cooked like a whole bag of like fifty chicken nuggets so it's not so bad. So yeah, that was my Wednesday night.**

**Anyway, I'm in a lot of pain so I have to hurry this up but yeah, I hope you like this, thanks for the feedback on last chapter :)**

**Enjoy!**

Chapter 9

"So, when we're at school we still hate each other, right?" Austin asked as he trailed kisses down Ally's neck. She closed her eyes, grunting an affirmative. She gasped as he nibbled her earlobe, squirming slightly. He groaned at the movement, pulling away and resting his head on her shoulder. They were in the back of his car, in the far corner of the parking lot, him straddling her legs as they made out heatedly.

"We should stop now. People are arriving." He whispered. She nodded, sighing in disappointment. They stayed still for a moment, neither of them wanting to move, but finally Austin forced himself to get off her lap and sit next to her, straightening his rumpled shirt. She smiled, readjusting her own clothes. He opened his mouth to tell her that her hair was a little messy, but stopped himself. It looked sexy, almost like sex-hair. Even though they couldn't go public, at least not yet, he wanted people to at least know that she belonged to _someone. _

They hurriedly left the car, careful to make sure nobody was around before dashing across the lot. Austin headed towards the main entrance while Ally looped around to the library doors at the side of the building. School didn't start for another thirty minutes, but there were a few people hanging around and she didn't want to attract suspicion by walking in with him.

She sighed as she took a seat at one of the desks, smiling half-heartedly at the librarian as she grabbed the nearest book and wished that she could be there with Austin, rather than by herself. She was sick of feeling alone.

…

Austin grinned, on a high from his before-school activities. It all seemed like a bit of a dream to him; he'd always wanted Ally Dawson, and now he had her. Okay, their relationship was rocky at best, but she'd admitted that she liked him a lot, and that was better than anything he'd ever dared to hope for. His friends were waiting for him at his locker, and he greeted them cheerily.

"'Sup guys?"

"Not much, really. We're all going to the movies on Friday to see Star Wars in 3D, do you wanna come?" Jake asked, excited. Austin shook his head.

"Sorry, I can't, I have plans." They all stared at him. He frowned back at them, confused by their confusion.

"What?"

"You have _plans? _You never have _plans_. We're your only friends…" Jake pointed out. Austin opened his mouth to protest, but then he shrugged.

"I guess that's true…but I don't have plans with friends."

"Then who do you have plans with?"

"Al-I mean erm…my family. We're, um, we're going to see my Great Aunt Rachel…" he stammered. The three of them frowned and glanced at each other, suspicious.

"Who is she?" Denny asked. Austin's eyes widened.

"Wh-what do you mean? Who is who? My Great Aunt Rachel? She's my great aunt…"

"Austin, you don't have any Great Aunts. Who's the girl you're screwing?"

"Jake!" he yelped, shocked.

"Aw, come on, we're not stupid. I mean, look at you. It was only a matter of time since you got good-looking." He shrugged. Austin sighed, leaning back against the locker and running a hand through his hair.

"Am I really that obvious?" he sighed. There was a collective gasp and he looked up, surprised at the shocked looks on his friends' faces.

"Whoa, what? We didn't _actually _think you had a girl!" Greg half-shouted.

"Shh!" Austin slapped a hand over his friend's mouth, looking around to make sure nobody had heard. They all stared at him, wide-eyed, until Jake snorted loudly and they all started laughing hysterically. When they finally stopped Austin was glaring at them, arms folded.

"Seriously, do you really find it that hilarious that I have a girlfriend?" he winced as he said the word, because he wasn't sure if it was a lie or not. Okay, so they hadn't really discussed going exclusive. They hadn't discussed much at all after their conversation on the beach. It took all he had, and probably all that Ally had too, to stop kissing her and let her get out of the car and go home.

"Oh, so it's a girlfriend? I thought it was just a fuck-buddy." Austin glowered.

"Don't call her 'it'. And don't be a dick; you know I'm not that kind of guy."

"Oh really? So, what, you're _not _the type of guy to sleep with your friend's girlfriend?" Austin froze, jaw-dropping.

"H-how did you know about that?" he asked Denny, shocked.

"I used to go to school with Dallas, before I moved to Miami. I never realised that the _Austin_ he mentioned a couple times when he was talking about summer was _you_…until he called me up and told me that 'this Austin Moon bastard fucked my girlfriend'. I wanted to give you the benefit of the doubt, but apparently you don't regret it, if you're still with her." Denny looked disgusted. Austin shook his head.

"Look, Denny, you know me. You know I'm not a bad guy. What happened was…it was an accident. We drank too much, and the truth came out, and one thing led to another…it's not just sex. And I didn't mean to hurt Dallas." He tried to explain, but Denny just scoffed. He didn't want to lose his friends, didn't want them to think he was a liar, a jerk. Denny sighed.

"Look, Austin, I want to believe you, but the Austin I knew never would have done something like this. Not to a friend. And you never would have given _Ally_ _Dawson_ the time of day, let alone slept with her. I don't know if it's because of the new look, or if you've been acting different for longer and I've overlooked it, but whatever it is, you've changed. And I don't know if I like this new Austin." He said quietly. Austin bit his tongue, nodding understandingly, and then glancing at the other two. They both looked a little shocked, probably by the revelation that it was _Ally Dawson, _the most popular girl in school and what they had thought to be Austin's least favourite person in the world, was the girl he was sort-of-dating. Greg shrugged, and then turned to follow Denny as he walked away. Jake glanced at their retreating figures and then back at Austin, torn.

"Austin, I-"

"Just go with them, Jake. We both know you'd rather hang out with the two of them than me."

"I'm sorry mate. I don't think you've changed too much. I think you just need to let Denny cool off, you know? Things will blow over. Oh, and good luck with Ally." He added, winking, before running off after the others. Austin laughed. He could always count on Jake to lighten the mood, even when he was being abandoned by the only friends he had in the school.

"Thanks Jake. See you around." He smiled, and then sighed, turning to rest his forehead against the locker. The day had started so positively. Groaning loudly, he checked his watch. He still had forty-five minutes to kill before lessons started.

With a sigh, he made up his mind. Slamming his fist against the locker, he straightened up, shook his head, and marched out of the school building.

He started his car and drove out of the lot, only a couple freshmen there to see him make his escape.

He didn't know where he was going, or what he was going to do. All he knew was that he couldn't face school, with his friends ignoring him and the girl he was in love with refusing to acknowledge his existence.

…

Austin mostly ended up driving around the streets of Miami aimlessly for what felt like minutes, but before he knew it the clock on his dashboard read 2:10pm and he cursed, realising that he would be late picking Ally up. Then he laughed at himself, realising that Ally wouldn't want to be picked up outside the school anyway. She'd suggested meeting him at the playground a couple blocks away, so that no-one saw them leave together.

He arrived at their meeting spot a matter of minutes before Ally turned the corner, saw the car parked on the side of the road, and beamed. She sped up a little, practically flinging herself into the car and kissing Austin. He laughed, kissing her back, but pushed her away after a moment or two.

"Ally, this is a children's playground. Let's pause for a minute." He chuckled. She laughed, sitting back and pulling her seatbelt over her shoulder.

"As long as we can resume when we get back to my place…" she winked and he gulped.

"I don't know…the car isn't the most comfortable place for long make-out sessions…"

"I didn't mean in the _car._" She said softly. He almost thought she sounded nervous, but the smirk on her face as she stared at her phone, which was suddenly in her hands, told a different story. He grinned.

"Won't your dad be home?" he asked. She shrugged, just as her phone buzzed. She read the text and her face lit up.

"My dad's in LA, he's been held up. Won't be home until tomorrow evening at the earliest. We have the whole night to ourselves…"

Austin revved the engine and broke pretty much every speed limit there was on the way back to Ally's house.

When they arrived he parked his car on the side of the road and they stumbled out, wrapping their arms around each other and stumbling up the driveway between sloppy kisses.

When they got inside, Ally pulled away to slip off her shoes and jacket. Austin did the same, before wrapping his arms around her from behind in a backwards bear-hug and kissing her neck. She shivered, grabbing his hand and pulling him towards the staircase hurriedly.

They were barely even aware of what they were doing until they found themselves on Ally's bed, stripped down to their underwear, her straddling his hips as she trailed kisses down his chest. He groaned as she tugged at the waistband of his boxer's teasingly, making her chuckle, sending vibrations through his body. He moaned loudly and she moved back up to kiss his lips.

"Whoa…have you been practising?" he joked, slightly out of breath. She rolled her eyes.

"You're the only guy I've been with. In any way. I'd barely even had a proper kiss before you…you're the only guy I could imagine doing this with." She whispered, lips on his earlobe. He smiled, letting her explore him for a little while longer before he couldn't take it anymore. He grabbed her wrists, rolling them over so he was on top and pinning her hands above his head. She licked her lips, cheeks flushed, as he pinned her hands above her head.

"My turn." He growled.

And then his hands were on her back, on her bra strap. And then on the elastic of her pants. And then she was tugging on his boxers. And there was nothing between them, no barriers. And this time they weren't drunk not even a little bit. And neither of them had any reason to feel guilty.

And it was perfect.

**Thanks for reading, let me know what you thought in a review! :)**

**Song of the chapter: **Love is Easy, **by McFly.**

**Such a good song. Even better band. What else can I say? **

**Thanks guys :)**

**-Kacey x**


	10. Confrontation in the Cafeteria

**Thanks for the reviews on last chapter! I appreciate them all :)**

**Hope this chapter is okay! **

**Enjoy!**

Chapter 10

Things were okay for a few weeks. Well, as okay as they can be when you're in love with a girl who won't even admit she has anything to do with you. In many ways, it was easy to keep up the pretence. Even before, the two of them had never really spoken much, not even to argue. It was universally acknowledged that Ally Dawson and Austin Moon did _not _get on, and if they had the occasional insult-trading match or people caught one of them glaring at the other angrily, it was whatever.

And if any rumours circulated about one of them, it was almost always assumed that it was the other that started it.

Which was why it was such a shock to everyone when the rumours that the two of them were having sex started up.

At first, neither of them had any idea. They both experienced some odd looks, but had no reason to assume it was anything big. But then it got worse, and every time they were near each other it was like everyone was talking but at the same time it was silent.

Eventually, the rumours got back to Trish, who decided to confront Ally in a very public setting.

The middle of the cafeteria.

"Ally, have you heard these rumours?" she half-yelled, shock and suspicion written all over her face. Ally wasn't too taken aback; from people's behaviour she'd gathered that something was going round. She just couldn't really be bothered to care that much.

"No, actually, I haven't. What are people saying this time?" she half-smiled to let her friend know that she wasn't worried. Trish looked a little relieved and her mouth twisted disgustedly.

"People actually think you've got something going on with _Austin Moon._" She mock-whispered. Ally's eyes widened and she looked around, instinct making her search for Austin. For a moment she thought he wasn't there, but the she noticed everyone seemed to be looking between her and the entrance, and sure enough, he was stood there looking just as shocked as she did. Their gazes met and she silently pleaded with him for help. He just shrugged, almost imperceptibly, and she took a deep breath and looked back at Trish.

"So what if I was?" she asked, expression stony. Trish gasped, hand flying up to cover her mouth comically.

"Ally! He's, like, the biggest loser in Miami High!"

"Yeah, and whose fault is that?" she asked, rolling her eyes when Trish just looked blank, "Mine, Trish! It's my fault! Sure, he's a bit of a geek, but let's be honest. If I hadn't had a stupid thing against him all these years, he wouldn't be such a loser. People might actually treat him as an equal." She shrugged. Everyone was silent.

"So…you _are _sleeping with him?" Trish asked, eyebrows raised. Ally sighed, thinking quickly. If she admitted it, she had no idea what the consequences would be. And that scared the shit out of her. But how could she deny it now, after what she'd said?

"I'm not confirming it, and I'm not denying it. I'm just saying that I'm sick of pretending like I'm better than him, or anyone else. The truth is, everyone at this school is equal. You get that? We're all equal. And we all have lives to get on with. Why should everyone get to know about my personal life? Just because I'm popular? Sorry, but someone taught me this summer that I don't have to pretend to be someone I'm not anymore. I'm not going to answer your question, Trish. You're supposed to be my best friend, yet you pull me up in front of everyone to ask me? You of all people know how private I am about relationships. What kind of friend does that?" she didn't look angry, although her words could be interpreted as such. She just looked disappointed, and she could tell she'd made Trish feel bad. Everyone was still silent, and stayed that way as she turned and walked out of the cafeteria, brushing past Austin as she left.

Austin considered following her, but he was still confused and knew that if he did, people would guess the truth and obviously she still didn't want them to be public. So he sighed, ignoring all the inquisitive stares, and made his way to the back of the lunch queue to get his food.

…

"You were amazing today, Ally." Ally jumped a little, surprised to hear her boyfriend's voice in her bedroom. She was worried he'd be angry with her, since she hadn't been honest. But when she turned to look at him, he was beaming, full of pride.

"I didn't tell the truth though. I'm sorry." She apologised, saddened. Austin frowned.

"You don't need to apologise, Ally. We had an agreement that we'd keep it a secret; I have no right to be angry with you for not telling everyone. In fact, I was kind of expecting you to laugh, make me look like a fool. What you did…you were really mature about it. And it was incredibly sexy." He winked. She chuckled, but still looked sad.

"I'm glad you're not hurt. But honestly, I feel like I owe it to you to come clean. You've been amazing, and I feel like I'm just…playing with you." She sighed. He raised an eyebrow.

"You can play with me all you want. I don't mind. Honest." He grinned. She slapped his arm, laughing.

"God, you're such a guy. You don't have to make _everything _sexual." She muttered. He chuckled and dropped a kiss on her cheek, before lying down on the bed and pulling her down beside him, an arm around her shoulders.

"Seriously, though. I know you have your reasons, and I understand. Yeah, I wish you would tell people. But only because I want to be able to kiss you in school. I want to be able to walk you to lessons, to yell at any guy who even attempts to come onto you. I want to be able to tell people that you're _mine, _and that I'm _yours._" He told her, rubbing soothing circles on her shoulder with the pad of his thumb. She smiled, tearing up slightly.

"Can you believe this?" she choked out, astounded as realisation finally hit her.

"Believe what?"

"That after all those years of us being, like, mortal enemies or whatever, we're actually lying here, on my bed, completely in love?" she laughed, a little freaked out by the enormity of their situation. She felt him shrug.

"It is pretty hard to believe. Which is why I kind of feel like, maybe…maybe we always liked each other. I mean, I know I always liked you. But maybe it was more mutual than we thought." He said, voice lower than usual. He was a little worried about how Ally might react to his theory. She was quiet for a minute.

"I think…I think you're right. I mean, I always thought my feelings for you were simply hate, but looking back…it's conceivable that there was some attraction mixed in there. Like, I always felt a little nervous when it came to our birthday and we'd have to get up there together. I always told Trish that I hated being near you, acknowledging that we had something in common. But thinking about it…that doesn't really explain it. If I hated you, why would you make me feel nervous?"

"I don't know. Honestly, I think we were both very mixed up emotionally. But we're together now, right? That's all that matters, to me anyway." He said, his voice soft. They were both drifting into sleep, warm and comfortable in each other's arms. With one last yawn, Ally grunted in agreement and then wriggled closer to him.

They were asleep within minutes.

And they didn't wake up until Ally's dad yelled at them from the doorway.

…

"Dad! Please, stop! Nothing was going on, we were just sleeping!" Ally defended herself. She was currently stood facing him in the kitchen while Austin sat awkwardly on a stool at the breakfast bar, bright red and biting his lip. Ally's dad's face was a similar colour, but more out of anger than embarrassment.

"Allyson Marie Dawson, don't you dare tell me to stop! I come home from work and go to check on my seventeen year old daughter-might I add, that at _seventeen, _this is illegal!- to find her curled up with some _boy _in _bed! _I have _every _right to be angry!" he shouted in response. Ally sighed, shaking her head.

"I promise we were just sleeping, Dad. Honestly!"

"Somehow I find it difficult to take your word for it, Allyson." He spat, shooting another scathing glance towards the blonde boy at the counter.

"Oh, come on Dad! I know I've lied to you a lot in the past, but I thought we'd agreed that I've changed! I'm a different person since camp!" she protested. He sighed, rubbing his face angrily.

"I know, Ally, and I want to believe you. It's just… I know you're growing up. I've accepted that. But as a single father, sometimes I find it difficult to judge what's acceptable and what's not. And…I don't trust teenage boys." Ally rolled her eyes.

"_You_ were a teenage boy once." She pointed out. He chuckled darkly.

"That's exactly why I don't trust them." He replied. She groaned.

"Look, Dad, you have to believe me. Yes, Austin is my boyfriend. Yes, we're serious. Yes, we've had sex. But that is not what we were doing when you came in, and-"

"You've what?" he yelled, eyes wide and face even redder a he glared at Austin murderously. Ally sighed. She had hoped that if she slipped that in there, like it was nothing, he wouldn't notice it.

Well, okay. She'd hoped he wouldn't react too badly. He's her father. Of course he noticed.

"Dad, stop! It's as much my fault as his, don't you dare go all psycho on him!" she shouted, placing her hands on his shoulders to calm him. Austin looked like he'd give anything for the ground to swallow him whole right then. Her dad was still breathing heavily but he didn't look like he had plans to murder the blonde anytime soon, so she moved her hands and looked him in the eye.

"I'm a big girl now, Dad. I can make my own decisions and my own mistakes. I'm smart, and so is Austin. I love him. Shouldn't that be all that matters?"

"No, Ally, it shouldn't. You're seventeen! And I damn well hope that he is, too, or I'm definitely getting my Taser." He glowered over her shoulder. Ally nodded quickly, reassuring him.

"Actually, it just so happens that we share a birthday. So we're the same age. Exactly. Look, Dad, I know this is difficult for you, but honestly? I always figured you thought I was having sex for a long time." She frowned. He rubbed his neck sheepishly.

"Well…I never believed it truly. But yes, honestly, sometimes you gave the impression that you were a little promiscuous." He admitted. She rolled her eyes.

"Dad, nobody says 'promiscuous' anymore." she cringed, "But anyway, see, if you thought that already and didn't lose your cool, why should you know?"

"Because now I know for sure! And I caught you in bed with the damn culprit!" he shouted. She laughed.

"Dad, Austin isn't the 'culprit'. It was definitely a mutual decision. He's not taking advantage of me, and I don't feel pressured in any way. Okay?" she looked so mature in that moment that it brought a tear to Lester's eye. He sighed, still not happy with the development, but nodded in defeat.

"Alright. As long as you're happy. But please…God, please don't _ever _let me catch you." He shuddered at the thought and so did Ally. Austin just went even redder and let out an embarrassed cough, just to remind them that he was still there and break the awkward silence.

"So…I think you should get going young man. Wouldn't want your parents to worry about you." He addressed Austin civilly, but Ally could tell he still felt very hostile towards her boyfriend. Ally sighed, grabbing Austin's hand once he'd jumped down from the stool he was perched on.

"Yeah, um…thanks Mr Dawson. See you." He mumbled, smiling and squeezing Ally's hand to let her know he was okay. She smiled back, and Lester couldn't help but notice that, as much as he disliked the idea of his only daughter getting _serious _with a boy, she did look much happier than he'd seen her for a long time, and he could tell from the way the boy smiled that he wasn't messing around with Ally, for which he was grateful.

Ally walked Austin to his car and then wrapped her arms around him in a hug.

"I think he handled that well." She said into his shirt, smiling with relief. He laughed, nodding in agreement.

"I can't believe you just came out and told him, Als. At first, I actually kinda thought it was a mistake. I honestly thought he was going to stab me. I've never been so afraid for my life." He shuddered at the memory of Lester's face. Ally laughed.

"Yeah, I wasn't too surprised by his reaction to be honest. But he seems okay with it now. Although when he told us not to let him catch us…urgh. That's such a put-off." She looked a bit grossed out and he laughed.

"Don't worry. We won't. It's not like we're having sex all the time. We've only done it, what, five times?" he nudged her. She laughed and rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, I suppose. I just feel like…he knows now. So if he ever comes home and we're, like, hanging out watching a movie, he's just going to be thinking 'have they had sex today?', which is rather awkward." She furrowed her brow.

"I doubt that, Als. He'll probably just try to forget about it, to be honest." He shrugged. She laughed.

"Good point. Man, sometimes I really wish my mom was still here." She sighed.

"Why? So you can gossip about how good I am in bed?" he joked.

"Honestly? Yeah. It'd be kinda nice to have someone I could talk to like that. I mean, it's not like I can talk to Trish about it, and the only other friend I have that I'd discuss these things with is Cassidy." She sighed. He looked puzzled.

"Then why don't you talk to Cassidy?" he asked. She looked sad.

"Well, it's hardly something I want to discuss over the phone, Austin."

"Why would you need to talk over the phone? You could see her face to face."

"What?" Ally looked up at him, shocked. He laughed, realisation dawning.

"Oh, you didn't know? Cassidy lives here in Miami! She actually works over at the Melody Diner. Her house is, like, twenty minutes away." He told her. Ally stared up at him, shocked, for a long time.

Then she punched him in the stomach.

**Thanks for reading! What did you think?**

**I'm pretty sure we're now past the point that I ended at before the extremely long hiatus, so please review as much as possible! :D**

**Song of the chapter: **Sins of my Youth, **by Neon Trees.**

**It's probably the least relevant of all the songs so far but it's an amazing song aha so yeah :)**

**Thank you! **

**-Kacey :)**


	11. Here Come The Girls

**So...sorry about the wait to those of you who are amazing and reviewed!**

**All 11 of you.**

**Seriously though please can you guys review? I love and appreciate all the favourites but it depresses me when I only get a small amount of reviews :'(**

**Thanks for being faithful and I'm sorry to moan :/ **

**Enjoy!**

Chapter 11

"So, you actually punched him?" Cassidy giggled, even more so when I nodded, blushing.

"Well, he didn't tell me that you lived in Miami! I had a right to punch him!" Ally defended herself. Cassidy rolled her eyes.

"He is a bit of an idiot. I realised after you left that I never told you. And I'd never even gotten your number. It didn't occur to me when we saw each other every day at camp." She sighed. Ally shrugged.

"Well, you've got it now. And I suppose I can forgive my _idiot _of a boyfriend since he is the reason you're here right now…" she conceded.

After Austin had recovered from being punched in the stomach-which wasn't even hard, despite his claims that it was _bruised (_come on, have you _seen _Ally's muscles? No? Yeah, because she _has _none.), he'd given Ally Cassidy's number and she'd hurriedly said goodbye before running back into the house, up to her bedroom, and dialling the number.

"Hello?" Cassidy had answered, a little cautious. Ally squealed and, as soon as she recognised the voice, Cassidy did the same. As it turned out, Cassidy had lived in Miami all her life, but the reason Ally had never met her was because she went to the private all-girls school, Miami Mount Academy, and she'd never really had any friends outside of the school. Austin had met her through the camp back when he first started going, when he was eleven, and since then they'd been close friends. He'd never seen her much outside of camp, however, because despite knowing that she lived in Miami, neither of them had been able to drive until recently, and they lived just far enough that that was a problem. But the point was, Cassidy lived twenty minutes away. And they could all drive now.

After a very long, very detailed conversation on how much they'd missed each other and how long it had been, Ally had told Cassidy that she simply _had _to come round the next day, (a Saturday), and Cassidy had agreed, deciding to ditch work because catching up with her friend was much more important.

And that was how they came to be lying on the beanbags on Ally's bedroom floor, eating popcorn and talking with _Monster's University _playing on the TV. (Ally may or may not have found a pirate copy. Don't be mad. She was a Disney freak. And she _had _seen it at the movie theatre _and _was definitely planning to buy the DVD so really, who was it hurting?) They weren't really paying attention to the movie though because they were too busy talking.

"So, anyway…okay, so the reason you even came up in conversation was because, um…basically, my dad found us asleep together in my bed. _Just sleeping, _before you get all giggly, but he kinda flipped and I ended up admitting to him that we're having sex and then eventually I managed to calm him down and convince him not to kill Austin. Anyway, then I was telling Austin how I wish my mom was still here so I could talk to her about it all, you know, _sex, _and then I said that I wished I had a friend I could talk to about it. And then I mentioned you, and how I wish you were here, and he was like 'why don't you talk to her?' and then he told me you lived here, blah blah blah, and then I kinda punched him because I was pissed that he'd only just told me and I was in shock because _you live in Miami!" _Ally explained. Cassidy grinned.

"Aw, you want to have a girly talk? I'm honoured! Although, I don't know how much help I'll be with the sex stuff…you know, I only really do that kind of thing with other girls. But I've made out with Austin!" she added, and then cringed. Ally rolled her eyes.

"Nice, Cass."

"Sorry. Didn't think that one through." She felt bad but Ally just shrugged.

"Honestly, it doesn't bother me at all. Austin had sex before he met me, and that doesn't bother me. So why would it bother me that he made out with you? Especially since you obviously didn't have feelings for him."

Cassidy chuckled.

"Nope, none. And it was only for a dare. To be fair, at the time he didn't know I was gay…but I did. I thought I made it obvious, too. But it didn't seem to sink in to his thick skull until he caught me and my ex-girlfriend, although she wasn't an 'ex' at the time, doing the nasty in my cabin." They both laughed at Austin's stupidity.

"For a straight-A student, the guy sure can be dumb." Ally observed.

"So, anyway…give me all the details! What's he like?" Cassidy grinned, leaning in like she didn't want to miss anything. Ally sighed, smiling gratefully.

"Don't worry about it, Cass. I wouldn't want to make you feel uncomfortable." Ally said. Cass rolled her eyes and lightly punched Ally's arm.

"Girl, if it made me feel uncomfortable, I wouldn't have asked. I want to know! I need to know if my boy is treating you right!"

Ally giggled, blushing.

"Oh, he's _definitely _treating me right. I mean, I don't remember the first time all too clearly. But I do remember, despite us both being pretty drunk, he did ask if I was sure. A few times. And he was…really gentle. And I remember him being really apologetic, as well. And since then…he's just really gentle, and sweet. But not so gentle it's annoying. Like, I have had bruises. And he likes to give me hickeys. All the time. Mostly on my stomach, though. If he left one where people could see it, he knows I'd kill him." She laughed. Cassidy beamed.

"Aw, that's adorable. So many people think hickeys are, like, really dirty and gross, but I don't see it that way. To me, it's like…it's a possessive thing. I like what the English call it…a _love bite. _Isn't that just adorable? Like, that's usually what it is, isn't it? It's something you do to kinda say, _'hi, I love you, and I'm leaving a mark here to let people know that you're mine'. _I think it's sweet. But you're right, I suppose. You don't want them to be visible." she smiled softly. Ally nodded, agreeing.

"Before Austin, I have to admit I thought they were vulgar. But now…I understand, I suppose. I like that he leaves marks. It kind of…it proves he's been there, and it's like he's saying he likes it, my body, _me."_

"So, anyway, more details! How often have you done it? Where have you done it? Have you had car sex yet? Car sex is the _best_. Except angry sex. Angry sex is unbeatable." Cass grinned, and Ally got the feeling that she'd had some pretty good experiences with car sex. And angry sex.

"No, actually, we haven't. We've gotten pretty heated in the car, though, and almost went there one time. But we've only ever done it in a bed. And we were discussing this yesterday; actually…I think we said five. Five times. We've had sex five times, including the time at camp." Ally glanced at Cassidy and was surprised by the shocked look on her face.

"Five?" she gasped. Ally frowned.

"Yeah…that's not that much, right?"

"Fuck, Ally. It's been _weeks. _And with the amount of unresolved sexual tension you two had going throughout your whole time at camp…I figured you'd have been at it like rabbits. Five is _nothing."_ Ally blushed furiously.

"There was no UST between us at camp, Cass. We just…didn't like each other. At all." Ally informed her. The blonde snorted.

"Right. No UST. Pull the other one, Als, it's got bells on."

"What?" Ally looked bewildered.

"Seriously, Ally? I'm pretty sure _everyone _saw it except you two. Honestly, that's why I wasn't too shocked when I found out that you guys had done it. I was pretty pissed at Dallas, actually, for asking you out. There was no way he couldn't see it." She elaborated. Ally stared at her, open-mouthed.

"No! There's no way! Seriously?" she blurted.

"Yeah, deadly serious. Ally, everyone was waiting for you two to realise how much you wanted to screw each other. Nobody would have been that surprised if you'd started going at it mid-argument. I can't believe you didn't see it. Then again, I suppose if you had had this 'hating each other' thing going on for that long…you must have been so used to it you barely even noticed it anymore."

"I can't believe…me and Austin talked about this, actually. About how we think we must have kind of had feelings for each other before, back when we _thought _we hated each other. But I never thought it was like that…honestly, though, on that first day of camp, when he performed that song…I think I kinda knew. And then I was watching him, and you went over and kissed him…I think I felt kind of jealous. But I told myself that I was just disgusted that anyone would want to kiss him. But, I suppose…I never liked Tilly. Like, at all. I had this stupid resentment towards her, and again I suppose at the time I told myself I was disgusted by her infatuation with Austin. But now I think…I think maybe it could have been jealousy." She sighed, relieved to finally be getting these things off her chest. Cassidy looked proud.

"See, I told you! You guys totally wanted each other, even if you didn't realise it." She smiled. They drifted into a comfortable silence for a while, watching the movie and occasionally throwing popcorn at each other. Just as they were both drifting off, however, Ally spoke up.

"Cass, can I ask you something?"

"Sure." Cassidy looked over.

"Why weren't you mad at me for cheating on Dallas?" she asked. Cassidy sighed.

"I knew you'd ask me this at some point. Okay, you want the full story?" she asked, sitting up straight. Ally got the feeling that this was important, and nodded, copying her.

"If that's okay…it's fine if you're too tired." Ally didn't want Cassidy to feel obligated to explain if she just wanted to go to bed. Cassidy, however, shook her head.

"No, don't worry. You should know. Okay, so, basically, Dallas has been going to the camp for as long as Austin has. And until this year, so did Dallas' brother." She began. Ally recalled that very first day, when she'd been secretly watching him greeting his friends, and Dallas had said something about his brother…moving out, was it? And the slightly tense reaction to it.

"Dallas never even mentioned his brother to me." Ally frowned. Cass laughed.

"I'm not surprised. His brother was a dick. And, at first, so was Dallas. He was called Graham, and he treated everyone like crap. He was only a year older than Dallas, but Dallas worshipped him. He had him brainwashed, basically. Dallas would do whatever his brother said. And Graham…Graham didn't like Austin. At all. They fought like crazy, over everything. There were even a couple of actual fistfights. Then Graham took it too far last summer…it's a long story, what happened, and I don't even know all the details. All I know is that Dallas played a big part in it. But then Graham did something else and Dallas…Dallas kind of realised how psycho his brother was. I'm not completely sure, and Austin refuses to talk about it, but I think…I think he knifed him. I know for definite that there was a penknife involved, and Dianne had to call an ambulance and the police. I mean, he was fine, just had a couple stitches, but Graham was arrested and, obviously, kicked out of camp. Dallas was kind of stuck, I guess. So he did what anyone would do…he apologised to Austin. He swore he had no idea what Graham was planning and that he regretted everything he'd ever done. Austin being Austin forgave him, and he kinda joined our group, but things were always kinda awkward between them."

"As you can expect. Wow. I can't believe Dallas was like that. _Dallas. _I mean, he's like, one of the sweetest guys I've ever met…I find it hard to believe that he's even related to someone like that." Ally was mind blown. And, honestly, pretty upset that Austin hadn't told her all this himself. Though Cass had said he didn't really talk about it…maybe he just didn't like to think about it. It wouldn't surprise her. It didn't sound like much fun.

"Yeah, it is pretty strange. I mean, now that I know him, I find it hard to believe that he was like that. And I saw it first-hand. But anyway, at the start of camp this summer, Dallas told Austin that Graham had moved out, and that he hadn't spoken to him since before the incident. Austin said they could just forget about it, pretend like Graham didn't exist, and things were fine. They were actually becoming quite close. But then, obviously, the whole thing with you happened…" Cass trailed off and Ally sighed.

"Damn. I fucked up their friendship." She looked forlorn, and Cassidy was quick to set her straight.

"No, Dallas did that. Ally, like I said, we could all tell that you two had feelings for each other. Even if you guys didn't know. And Dallas, out of all of us, is probably the best at reading people like that. In my personal opinion, there's no way in hell that Dallas didn't know about Austin's feelings for you. But he went and asked you out anyway. So, honestly? I think Dallas kind of asked for this. I'm not saying that what you and Austin did was right, or fair on Dallas. But it wasn't fair on either you or Austin for Dallas to make a move. So, honestly? I think you were all in the wrong. But it's okay now. You guys are happy, and I think Dallas is cooling off a bit. If he does decide to go to camp next year, he and Austin can work on their relationship. Well, if they decide they want to, that is. And if you decide to go again…even better. But for now, just be happy with Austin, and don't let Dallas get in the way of that." Cassidy advised her. Ally still felt a little guilty for ruining the almost-friendship, but Cassidy had a point. If Dallas could tell there was something between them, he never should have gotten in the way of that. Besides, it was Austin's fault as much as her own.

"I wasn't planning to let him get in the way of anything. But it would be nice to make things right with him." She sighed. Maybe she would, one day.

She hoped so, anyway.

**Let me know what you thought, yeah?**

**Review! :)**

**Also, thanks for reading and sticking with me I'm so totally swamped with school you wouldn't believe it I'm exhausted :'(**

**Chapter song: **Moments, ** by One Direction**

**Perfect song by the five boys I'm in love with. Sorry if you're a hater, but I have no time for haters so please, keep your opinions to yourself. Unless you're a fan and then LETS FANGIRL.**

**Seriously though the song is perfect and its so sweet and makes me want to sob I love it even if it wasn't 1D and Ed wrote it so...yes. Just listen.**

**Thanks! Have a good week! :***


	12. Lunch with Lester the Lawyer

Chapter 12

"So…how was your sleepover?" Austin smiled a little sheepishly; worried that she might get angry again. He still had a bruise from her punch. Okay, he didn't. He'd never had a bruise. But the mental scars were there! Ally grinned at him, however, unable to be angry with him.

"It was brilliant; we just talked and chilled out all night. I was worried it might be awkward, since we hadn't seen each other for weeks, but it was like we'd only just seen each other yesterday it was so easy. I can't believe I've never met her before; it's like we were meant to be friends!" Ally babbled, excited, and Austin couldn't help but chuckle bemusedly at her enthusiasm.

"I'm glad you still get on. You need a real friend. Well, you need more than one. But at least you've got someone other than me who knows the real you." He sighed, planting a kiss on the top of her head. She leant into him, still smiling, and closed her eyes.

They were sat on the couch in her lounge, waiting for her dad to get home. He'd decided he wanted to 'get to know' his daughter's boyfriend, especially if they were as serious as she said they were, so he was taking them out to lunch. Cassidy had left about an hour earlier and Austin had arrived about forty minutes after.

"I never really understood what it was like to have real friends and just be myself until I met Cassidy. Even before you, Cassidy was the only person I could be completely honest with and just act myself. And she's never once made me feel like I need to pretend to be someone I'm not. I've never lied to her. I've never felt the need. She accepts me completely for who I am. She's amazing." Ally sang her praise and Austin snorted.

"Wow, are you sure you're dating the right person here, Als?" he joked. She blushed, shaking her head.

"No, I'm pretty sure I've got that right." She replied, looking up at him through her lashes. He beamed and leant down to kiss her, twisting around so that they were at a less awkward angle. He meant to pull away after a moment or two but Ally's hands wound their way into his hair and he groaned, pressing himself closer to her and moving his hands down her chest, over her sides and onto her hips to pull her onto his lap. She giggled, pulling away to breathe and kiss him underneath his right ear, the place she knew drove him crazy, and he moaned loudly.

"Ally, your dad-"

"Isn't due home for another twenty-five minutes." She breathed into his ear and he laughed, rolling his eyes.

"Ally, no. You know what he's like; he's always early. And I'm not having sex on your couch, as much as the idea appeals to me, when your dad could walk in any minute. I value my life too much." He said sternly. She pulled back, pouting, giving him the puppy dog eyes he usually couldn't resist, but he still shook his head. She rolled her eyes but seemed to give in.

"Fine. Whatever. I'll just-" she started to move away, but he caught her arms and grinned maliciously.

"Hey! I never said you could go anywhere. I'm not having sex with you right now, but I still want to kiss you. A lot." He protested. She giggled, not having to be told twice. Their lips were connected again and one of Austin's hands moved to cup her ass, making her shiver and bite his lip. Hard.

"Fuck! Ally! That fucking hurt!" he yelped, hand flying to his lip. When he pulled it away there was blood and he glared at Ally, half angry, half amused. She just shrugged and smiled guiltily. His frown turned to a smirk and before she knew what was happening, he'd wriggled slightly out from underneath her and pushed her sideways. With a squeal, she tumbled off the couch and landed on the floor, legs in the air.

He laughed loudly at the angered look she shot him, but then before he realised what she was planning she had got to her feet, straddled his legs and was leaning over him.

"Oh, now you're in for it." Her eyes glinted evilly and he opened his mouth to ask what she was doing, but was interrupted as she brought her hands down to his sides and started tickling him.

"Ally!" he half-screamed through hysterical giggles.

"Yes, Austin?" she looked down at him, innocent and childlike, and he wanted to kiss her so badly, but he couldn't do anything other than wriggle around and occasionally let out unintelligible gasps as she attacked him.

"S-stop!" he finally managed to choke out. She did, momentarily, but only to ask him why should she?

"B-because you love me!" he tried. She looked thoughtful for a moment, then shook her head and started up again.

"Ally!" he shrieked.

"What?"

"What the hell is going on in here?" Lester Dawson stood in the doorway, a single eyebrow raised in suspicious confusion. Ally froze, head snapping up to smile at her dad apologetically.

"Sorry, Dad. We were just…messing around."

"Actually, she was trying to _kill _me." Austin growled melodramatically, shoving Ally backwards into the side of the couch so he could sit up and catch his breath. Lester rolled his eyes.

"You two are such children. Come on, we'd better go or we'll be late for the lunch reservations." He gestured towards the door and the two of them jumped to their feet, following him out into the hall to put their shoes on and grab their jackets.

"Ally, do you have your phone?" Lester suddenly asked. Ally nodded, confused. Why did he care? It's not like she'd need to contact him.

"Yeah, why?"

"Your mother called me this morning, needing to speak to you. I told her you were still asleep but gave her your number so she could contact you. She said she'd call later, but you know your mom. That could mean anytime between now and Christmas." He sighed, and Ally laughed at his exasperated expression. He seemed to look like that a lot when he spoke about her mom.

"Okay, thanks. She hasn't called me yet but I'll try to make sure I answer it when she does. Did she tell you what it was about?" she inquired as they walked through the front door, linking her hand with Austin's. Her dad shrugged.

"Probably, but I never understand half of what that woman says. She sounded happy, though, so I don't think she's angry with you."

Ally smiled, feeling a little guilty. She hadn't even spoken to her mom since she left camp, save for a few 'How are you?' texts. She couldn't help but look forward to having a real conversation with her, and hoped that she'd call her later that day.

"So, Mr Dawson, where are we going for lunch?" Austin asked. Ally smiled and squeezed his hand reassuringly, knowing just how nervous he was about it. Lester smiled at him, albeit a little tight-lipped, and rattled off the name of a restaurant Ally had never heard of. She forgot the name straightaway, but Austin's eyes widened.

"Really? But that place is ridiculously expensive! And I thought it was virtually impossible to get a reservation?" Austin sounded awestruck, which made Lester smug.

"Well, Austin, when you're the best lawyer in Florida you earn enough money to dine wherever you feel like it. And it's not difficult to get a reservation when you saved the place from being sued for millions by some ditzy celebrity with too much money who claimed she'd found a rat in her soup." Ally rolled her eyes at her dad's show-offishness, but Austin looked enraptured.

"Whoa. That's pretty cool. Als, you never told me your dad was a lawyer." He turned to Ally, accusing. She shrugged.

"Never really came up. And it's hardly interesting. He gets paid millions of dollars every year to lie to a judge and keep guilty people out of prison." She scowled slightly, and Lester sighed.

"Ally, you _know _that's not it at all. That was on person, one time, and I've regretted it ever since. But someone has to do the job, and if I hadn't, someone else would have." He looked sad, and Austin was confused. Ally noticed his expression and decided to elaborate.

"Basically, a few years back, dad was offered a defense case for this guy who'd raped and some eleven-year-old girl. Admittedly, at the time there was reasonable doubt and he got the guy a not-guilty verdict. Then some new evidence came up that proved without a doubt that the guy _had _done it, but he'd fled the country and they never found him. So the bastard is still on the loose somewhere, potentially able to do it again, and it was because of my dad that he didn't get sent to prison." Ally explained, voice bitter. Austin frowned, glancing at Lester whose knuckles where white from gripping the steering wheel so hard.

"You have to understand…it's my job to defend my client, and honestly at the time I had some doubts that he'd done it too. If he hadn't fled, I would never have defended him again, not once I knew for sure that he'd done it. But it was too late. A lot of people blame me for that, and I'll admit, it is my fault to an extent. But that's my job. That's why I earn so much; I have to do things that most people wouldn't be able to. I'm not trying to justify myself. I wish I hadn't taken the case. But the truth of the matter is, he didn't go to prison because there _wasn't enough evidence. _Whether it had been me or someone else defending him, that fact still remained. Alright, I can't guarantee that the verdict would have been the same with a different lawyer. But it wasn't _me _that kept him out of prison. It was the lack of evidence."

"But you still took the case. You could have turned it down. Let someone else defend the potential rapist." Ally spat, glaring at him. Austin rubbed her shoulder comfortingly.

"Ally, c'mon. It's not his fault. It's his job." He said softly. Ally glared.

"Why are you taking his side? Don't you see the severity of this?"

"I do, I do. But look at it this way…it's like if you were a tutor, and there was someone who was so stupid and uncaring that he never passed anything, and you were asked to tutor him. It seemed like he would never get better, but there was a chance, maybe a single test he'd done really well in a couple years back. You could have turned him down, but you wouldn't, because there's always hope, right? So you tutored him and it seemed to work, but then he got to finals and failed the lot. People might blame you, but at the end of the day it was _him _that failed, and he would have whether you tutored him or not. I know it's hardly the same, but can you see what I'm getting at?"

"Austin's right, Ally. In my job, however, it's a lot more complicated that just saying 'no'. My boss chooses the cases I work on, and if I don't want to take a case there's a lot of complicated paperwork to fill out and, honestly, it puts a dent in your reputation, as a lawyer, to turn down a case. No matter what your reasons are."

"And it doesn't put a dent in your reputation to let some psychopath child-rapist to go free?"

"Yes, that too. But at the time, I didn't know that was going to happen."

Ally sighed loudly, closing her eyes and leaning back against the headrest.

"Look, Dad, I understand your reasons and honestly, I don't really blame you. I know it was a difficult situation. I just…I hate the fact that you had something to do with that, you know?"

"I know. I totally understand. That's why I told my boss I won't take any more cases like that. Maybe if I didn't have you, it would be different. But I told him that my daughter's opinion of me matters more than the money I earn." He looked her in the eyes through the rear view mirror, silently pleading with her to forgive him. She smiled softly.

"Thank you, Dad. I love you. And I know you didn't mean to let the guy go. Don't blame yourself, please." He didn't respond, and then they were pulling up outside the restaurant and Lester had clambered out and motioned for them to follow him.

"Hello Mr Dawson, it's good to see you! And your daughter too! Oh, you have a second guest with you today?"

"Yes, sorry Michael, I realise now I forgot to let you know that there would be three of us." Lester looked apologetic but the waiter, with whom Lester was obviously familiar, just waved it off.

"No problem, Mr Dawson, we'll just pull up another seat at your table." He signalled to a busboy to do exactly that and led them to a table in the corner of the building, large enough to seat six.

"I hope this will do for you, this evening?" he asked, smiling welcomingly at the three of them. Lester nodded.

"Yes, thank you, this is great."

"So, what drinks can I get for you? The usual for you and your daughter, I take it?" with Lester's nod he scribbled something down on his notebook and then turned to Austin, "And you, young man?"

Austin glanced at Ally, a little lost. Ally just rolled her eyes.

"Austin, it's just a fancy restaurant. It's not French. What do you want to drink?"

"Erm…can I just have an iced water, please?" he gulped nervously. The waiter's eyes glimmered with amusement but he simply nodded.

"Coming right up. I'll be back shortly with your menu's." he smiled and walked off. Austin let out a sigh of relief, and both Ally and her father laughed at him.

"What? I'm sorry, I'm not used to places like this." He defended himself, flushing. Lester chuckled and patted him on the shoulder. Ally grinned happily at the friendly gesture. She could see that her father was fast warming to Austin.

"Don't worry, young man. You'll get used to it."

**Sorry about the wait, guys! Thank you to everyone who reviewed and has stayed loyal to this story through everything, I'll try to be quicker, I'm just SO busy I barely even use my laptop unless I have homework and I keep forgetting :(**

**Song of the chapter: **Royals, **by Lorde.**

**I'm actually listening to that right now which is really the only reason its the song of the chapter, but yeah, it's an amazing song by an amazing artist and i'm a little in love.**

**Also STORY OF MY LIFE OMFG! If any of you are Directioners you'll understand how happy i am right now anufdygufbaerundasdfngm8wcnieu it's so perfect the song made my heart hurt omfg. **

**Sorry.**

**Thanks.**

**Kacey! :)**


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